A Mano Manaba
Forest and Sea: Environmental Education and Marine Sports This project involves a series of excursions to different threatened ecosystems, including protected marine areas, mangroves, dry forests, islets, and coastal communities in Manabí. The intention is to educate teenagers about these natural environments that are literally in their own “backyard.” Many of these young people come from fishing communities and are unaware of the wonders of the marine world. We want them to participate in various activities to open up new opportunities. Fifteen teenagers are selected from the library in rotating groups to be part of these experiences. They learn from other environmental advocates and acquire skills such as snorkeling, diving, fish identification, coral nursery care, and releasing baby hammerhead sharks trapped in fishing nets. They also learn to identify turtle nests and explore mangroves. The goal is to foster environmental awareness and commitment among young people who are the future guardians of the Ecuadorian coast. Additionally, they are provided with opportunities to pursue careers related to conservation, such as ecological guides, marine sports instructors, or university studies in biology, marine biology, and tourism, among other disciplines.
How to help
If you want to sponsor the education of a young person, you can consider any of the following packages in USD:
# 1
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Support for a rural coastal community teenager to have a surf lesson.
# 2
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Support for 5 teenagers from the rural coastal community for a group surfing day.
# 3
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Support for a rural coastal community teenager to visit the protected mangrove area of Isla Corazón and Fragatas.
# 4
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Support for 8 rural coastal community teenagers to participate in a full-day field trip with lunch included to the Puerto Cabuyal-San Clemente Coastal Marine Reserve
# 5
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Support for 3 community teenagers for a snorkeling class in a pool
# 6
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Support for obtaining an open water diving license for one teenager from the fishing community of Don Juan.
# 7
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Support for obtaining 4 diving licenses for a group of 4 teenagers from the fishing community of Don Juan.
# 8
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Support for a group of 8 rural coastal community teenagers for a 2-day, 1-night visit to the Dry Forest with meals included.
# 9
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You can also make voluntary donations.
# 10
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Additionally, since this is an initiative that originated from a community library, you can also contribute by donating books in good condition in Spanish or English.
Want to visit ?
It will be a pleasure to have the participation of tourists interested in visiting the program. The visit must be arranged in advance. During the visit, you will get to know the A Mano Manaba library and there will be a visit to the critically endangered Lalo Loor Dry Forest ecosystem. This ecosystem is frequently visited by program beneficiaries. If, during your visit, a surfing or snorkeling outing (or any other extraordinary activity) is coordinated, you can participate if there are available slots and by covering the costs of the activity.
If you want to donate
Thank you for considering donating! Your generosity makes a significant difference in the lives of those who need it most. To streamline the donation process, we have enabled a secure payment link that you can use to make your contribution quickly and easily.
*The donation packages mentioned above do not include additional fees charged by platforms such as WeTravel or PayPal.
For voluntary donations, please contact us to generate a personalized payment link. Also, if you prefer to make a donation via bank transfer, feel free to get in touch.
Additionally, we understand that some donors prefer to contribute directly to charitable organizations without intermediaries. If this is the case for you, we would be delighted to provide you with the direct contact information for the foundations, allowing you to communicate with them directly and coordinate your donation.
Please feel free to reach out to us at mariapaula@egt.ec to obtain the contact details of the organizations you wish to contribute to directly or to address any questions you may have.
We appreciate your generosity and commitment to the well-being of the community. Every donation counts and makes a difference!