EMPOWERING INDIGENOUS ENTREPRENEURS
Sparkroot Wild supports three conservation based, income generating initiatives which endeavor to boost the local economy while also creating avian habitat and caring for the environment in community.
A true gem, Conte-Burica is a vast cultural and natural area rarely explored by outsiders; a nature lover and wildlife photographer's paradise for those invited in.
In order to enter and experience the bird life, natural areas and culture of Conte Burica Territory, it is necessary to hire a Ngabe guide. Costa Rica’s national parks offer tourists the opportunity to hire certified guides who have gone through coursework which provides them the necessary skillset to offer a safe and satisfying experience in this culturally rich, historically fascinating, geologically dynamic and biologically intense country. Costa Rica’s history, ancient cultures and intense biodiversity are recognized as irreplaceable treasures by the international community.
NGABE NATURE GUIDE TRAINING & CERTIFICATION
Sparkroot Wild empowers hopeful Ngabe entreprenuers who wish to obtain certification as ecotourist and birdwatching guides in their Territory. This educational opportunity would be otherwise unobtainable to the indigenous population whose backbreaking subsistence wages (approximately $10/day) would be prohibitive to achieving certification.
When a Ngabe guide is hired to bring tourists into Conte-Burica Territory, the tour is led with intimate knowledge of ancestral homelands. Every trail is known and has a story, and the most ideal times and reliable places to spot rare endemic birds and other wildlife has been witnessed since childhood.
The opportunity to become a certified Nature guide enables Ngabe people to be hired more regularly - and at a living wage - as well as the ability to contribute to boosting the local economy of the Reserva when hospitality households and artisans offer traditional food, drinks, demonstrations and crafts along the trail while participating in the ecotourism economy
Support an indigenous entrepreneur today. Your donation will help cover the tuition and expenses necessary for a Ngabe individual (often a parent with children) to study and achieve not only tour guide certification, but the opportunity to gain a living wage.
BEE KEEPING COOPERATIVE
Meliponiculture. A big word for keeping world’s tiniest - and stingless! - honey bees. At Sparkroot Wild we promote this ancient practice because the bees (locally known as Mariolas / Tetragonisca angustula) play a vital role as pollinators of rainforest fruits and our conservation gardens which, in turn, expand and improve avian habitat.
These tiny magical creatures bless us with some of the most treasured honey in the world, all while supporting the health of ecosystems. Traditionally used for eye problems, respiratory infections, and wound healing; with thinner viscosity and strong antibiotic properties, the Melipona honey is revered for it’s unparalleled medicinal value. Recently it’s also been used for culinary purposes, as it’s flavor is uncommon and prized by chefs.
Our Mariola Bee Project is a conservation based initiative aimed at empowering Ngabe and Vista Mar residents as eco-entreprenuers. We provide resources to begin new household apiaries, thereby establishing new hives, protecting bees and encouraging healthier and more productive avian habitat.
When in full swing, we will also facilitate the sale of this rare and valuable honey. Produced through a collective which promotes local economic growth through ecological balance, regenerative agriculture and cultural continuance. It is our goal to donate one hive (and education about it’s care) to each of the Ngabe territory schools that receives a conservation community garden and bird mural.
Your contribution goes directly to these projects and has lasting impact in the communities we serve.
Donate today!
NATIVE PLANT & FRUIT TREE NURSERY
It is our goal to provide a fruit tree garden to each community school within the Ngabe Territory. In doing so, we need to purchase hundreds of fruit and nut trees, including native varieties. Currently an indigenous-owned nursery is in development to provide Sparkroot Wild with those trees for the gardens, and a livelihood for a group of teen eco-entrepreneurs.
Through the creation of household sanctuaries along a Territory birdwatching trail, and establishment of fruit tree gardens at Ngabe Territory Schools, we help protect and preserve endemic and vulnerable Costa Rican bird populations by increasing avian habitat. These places serve as safe havens where the life can thrive, encouraged by families in service to ecological balance in our world.
As indigenous people with incredible wisdom about the relationship between local plants, trees and birds, the Ngabe-owned nursery will be a valuable asset to supply the gardens, and in turn healthy hives of bees, thriving avian populations with happy children and communities sharing the harvest with both.
Join us in preserving cultural wisdom, empowering indigenous entreprenuers and establishing bird sanctuaries. Your contribution makes a direct and lasting impact on cultural lifeways preservation, local economic growth, and ecological balance. Donate today to support this important work.
“We must shift our thinking away from short-term gain toward long-term investment and sustainability, and always have the next generations in mind with every decision we make.”
―Deb Haaland
