Costas Verdes is a nonprofit organization helping multiple communities reconnect their forests back to the sea. In our area, Playa Guiones serves as a shining example of the difference Costas Verdes makes. Where 10 years ago there was nothing, there now are thriving trees actively improving conditions for both wildlife and tourists. The good news is Costas Verdes is expanding into Playa Pelada to continue their efforts and are already underway with a successful planting event. The bad news is, like so many organizations and businesses, they have to find a way to survive these tough times.
According to Director Gerardo Bolaños:
“Yesterday we planted 270 trees of Almendro, flor blanca (franjipani or plumeria), Ceibo barrigón and gallinazo with the 25 volunteers who showed up… We went from the front of Villa Las Palmas to both North and South of the beach, covering about three hundred meters of coast line. It is great to have volunteers but we really are in a tough spot financially.”
When asked about the details, Bolaños explained:
“Our GoFundMe campaign is just under $7k received so far, but the goal is $10k. We started this campaign to help us go through the pandemic, since 60% of our Nosara sponsors have dropped off since March. Also, we haven’t been able to do our normal tree planting tours (Tour Costas Verdes) since then, which was our second biggest fundraising source. A couple of grants we used to get every year, decided not to give it to us this year which is tough timing… Plus we have dropped our salaries and schedules, cut our budget to minimum, and continue to just do whatever we possibly can to get us through the pandemic alive as an organization. It’s been a really rough year in every sense for us at Costas Verdes, but we’re not giving up, and now more than ever, we need financial support and this is why we created this campaign. We appreciate all the help anyone can give us.”
Here is a link to the GoFundMe campaign:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/costas-verdes
There is a 501c-3 US tax deductible donation link available as well: