oeoo in Panama
26. July 2024 2024-07-26 20:50oeoo in Panama
Preserving Paradise
Our Environmental Project in Bocas del Toro, Panama
Our latest project is located in Bocas del Toro in Panama, an archipelago in the Caribbean known for its natural beauty, diverse wildlife and vibrant culture. This tropical paradise includes the main island of Isla Colón as well as numerous smaller islands and mangrove areas. Bocas del Toro is also home to indigenous communities who preserve their traditional way of life and pass on the cultural richness of the region.
From the large number of islands, we chose the small island of San Cristóbal for the start of our project. The island is located south of the main island of Isla Colón and covers an area of 37 square kilometres. Around 1,000 to 1,200 inhabitants live here, the indigenous Ngobe or Guaymí as well as a small number of emigrants. There are three important indigenous villages on the island: San Cristóbal, Bocatorito and Valle Escondido. The Ngobe live mainly from fishing, agriculture and handicrafts.
Collaboration with Bocas Recycle Center
In November 2023, in collaboration with the local Bocas Recycle Center, we were able to start implementing our project, which is based on analysing the waste problem in the region, finding solutions and, in the first phase, cleaning the local landfills.
So far, the Recycle Centre only collects waste from restaurants and hotels, most of which are run by foreigners. The local population cannot afford the fees for waste collection and, especially on the more remote islands, it is difficult for the local communities to bring their waste to Bocas Town due to limited resources and a lack of transport options. As a result, the inhabitants are forced to use the nearby mangroves as a rubbish dump.
Stronger Together: Fishermen and Recycling Center in Action
In cooperation with the Recycle Centre, we have started to clear the largest of the ‘dumps’ in the mangroves of San Cristóbal. We are involving the fishermen from this community in our campaign in order to sensitise them to the problem and encourage them to take responsibility for protecting the environment. During the first clean-up campaigns, we collected 3.5 tonnes of rubbish; we found discarded sofas, prams, televisions and even an oven among mountains of clothes, bottles, plastic bags and cans.
During collection, we sort the waste into recyclable materials and residual waste. We take the recyclable materials to the Bocas Recycle Centre, where they are sorted again by type of plastic, pressed and then transported by ferry to the recycling facility on the mainland.
Education for Sustainable Waste and Circular Economy
But our commitment fundamentally goes beyond cleaning up: we want to empower the community to change their waste management practices by educating them about the separation of waste into recyclable and non-recyclable waste. We are also building covered containers in which the residents of the village can store their pre-sorted waste until the next collection date and organising regular collection dates for recyclable waste.
In the long term, the project aims to gradually integrate all communities in the archipelago into the Bocas Recycle Centre’s waste collection network.
