Community Carbon Trees Founder is Going to Kenya

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Here is an update for the founder of Community Carbon Trees – Jennifer Smith. CRsurf is one of their ‘Tree Friends’ helping to plant trees around Costa Rica.


We are replicating our community empowerment reforestation model with the MAASAI clans by golden invitation from  Dalmas Tiampati Director of Maasai Center for Regenerative Pastoralism. We are honored and humbled and ready to work. Our model is redy to replicate and innovate with pastoral grazing and solar water and cooking solutions to address the specific needs in an area plagued by drought and desertification. Having worked in Costa Rica for over 20 years, and after learning many lessons and staying the course of dedication, we wanted to share our good news with our donors in Costa Rica and draw your attention to our new project in Kenya.

To donate to this visionary and pioneering project through Global Giving and receive a full US tax deduction, here is the link!

Lots of special people are involved both in Costa Rica and beyond to make this dream a reality. Thank you Elena Vargas Fonseca my Costa Rican collegue who has been pivotal in relicating the model to new communities and seeking international funding for our work in Costa Rica. Thank you to Franck St. Loubert for funding support and team support as we embark on this mission in Kenya!  Thank you Jessica Manley, Eduardo Hidalgo Cruz, Teresa Badilla, Alvaro Cerdas, Cristian Mena, Diana Saborio, Yedier Gamboa and all the workers who will continue with the work in Costa Rica while we are away….Thank you to Gabriel Hidlago our cinematographer who will be joing us the last two weeks to document our progress laying the foundations for solid ongoing work in Kenya and Costa Rica.

Elena Vargas and Jennifer Smith (Tree Jenny)

Jenny and Elena are packed and ready to go!! 

Our goals include: LISTEN LISTEN LISTEN and respond adequately with respect for cultural ways. Build resilience in an area often visited but usually forgotten in terms of long term community empowerment and afforestation. Engage with youth and elders who love trees. We will teach compost production as we always do right from the start… the secret is in the soil…. we will build a community tree nursery for production of biodiverse native species important to the area. We will go on a seed safari and establish seed collection networks and figure out where to plant the trees and who to plant them with fair pay… we will teach and build accounting and administration foundations for transparent and exact reporting about how we spend the money you so kindly and generously donate.
May I remind you… planting and growing trees is hard work. People should be paid to do it. Your donation is not “charity” in the typical sense… everyone will be working very diligently and many many of us work countless hours without being “paid” … Together, we will connect with NGO’s and the Kenya Forestry Service and become a positive FORCE for silvo pastoral afforestation in the region in such desperate need.
In all these things…TRUST is our mantra … Listen and Respond… good boundaries and clear direct non violent communication. Stay in alignment. What about you? Who can hear us?
WE LOVE TREES!!!
Donate to this project visiting their project on Global Giving. Right now all recurring donations up to $200 are being matched!

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