Our anecdotes about Planta!’s Student Camp continue. Along with 29 students of several Cuban universities, Juan Carlos experienced four days of intense learning: leadership, project management, working with the community, science communication, science ethics, among other topics related with biodiversity conservation.
Proyecto: Planta!’s Capacity Building program: supporting the conservation of threatened trees.
“As I was approaching the bus I wondered: What would I do for five days in a place where I do not know anyone? I better stay home. Upon our arrival to the Garden, we found out that we were sharing bedrooms with other students, like in college. So here I was, a little esceptic about the upcoming days and yet so eager to experience what the Camp had to offer”.
She studies at the Faculty of Tourism, which is why some of her Camp fellows friendly call her the “tourist”. Her vibrant personality definitely does not go unnoticed at this Camp.
“At first, during our discussions, I felt like people didn’t really understood why I was there. One of my motivations to participate in the Camp was to show that tourism could be sustainable and have a positive impact for local development; that it could raise funds towards the preservation of ecosystems affected by different causes.
Ayeli attended several Planta!’s events before. “I was aware of the background of the organizers and the participants, I thought I was not going to be selected for the Camp. My biology knowledge is very basic and I was worried that it was going to be a limitation for me”.
Nevertheless, she was a perfect fit for her team. Her innovative vision of conservation and sustainable development influenced most of their points of view, and actually her team was proclaimed the winner of the Camp. Ayeli thinks that the key is that “everybody comes openminded to learn and respect different criteria”.
«I strongly believe I can support conservation. I can raise awareness among stakeholders of the tourism industry and make a change. That is also conservation».
“I think about all I could do in my field to save the aguacate cimarrón (Dendrocereus nudiflorus) in Varadero and my faith is renewed.
“Transilvania is a protected area”, this is the clue for the next task the students have to develop. Curiously, no one in the Camp, not even Dracula himself, dares to doubt this statement. The scarce spare time the students have in three days of intense work, would have to be used to develop a conservation project following Planta!’s style, but with their own words.
They need to include every person involved in the area: the government, the farmers, the touristic industry, forestry workers, the social media. This mix of roles and scientific research integrates their knowledge and implies the active participation of every member of the team. The information offered to design the project is fragmented, so only through debate students can put all the pieces together to solve the conservation challenge they face. None of the participants suspect that they are actually designing a project with information from a real site of Cuba. The game is full of secrets, fantasy and morals, like every good fable.
Jesús and Ayeli are in the same team. When their conservation project was discussed it was surprising that hers was the dominant point of view; even though Jesús is a true Biology nerd interested in invasive plants.
“They are very competitive, and quickly adapt to new environments. I find them fascinating, since they develop their own ways to survive. I was studying invasive plants in my first year as part of a reference review presented at a scientific event. After that, I got involved with Planta! and went on an expedition with the team”.
He openly confesses that it is hard for him to integrate and team up. “But I like the way we have worked during the Camp, because that is how you work in science. At the Camp, people develop skills they did not have before”.
Another task the students have to accomplish is to design a flag for the team. Every member of the team will be deprived from their dominant skill to encourage them to develop other skills and to make space for their peers. In the case of Jesús, his voice was his lost ability, so Ayeli’s voice became the dominant one and the correlation of forces changed.
Jesús quotes Napoleon when he says that after being a General he could never be a soldier. “I know it is not quite like that. I have worked in a molecular biology lab and you work on your own most of the time, but when it comes to conservation, clearly the best way – or sometimes the only way – to achieve your goals is by joining forces”.
He wants to win a Nobel prize one day but it is not available for the science he studies. However, this time he did go home with a prize. He was voted Míster Planta! 2019 as part of the never ending celebration the Camp is. On the last night, many of the students could not sleep at all. Not because they were tired, they were just nostalgic.
by Alejandro Palmarola
A Project from the Madagascar Plant Specialist Group was funded by Planta! as part of the SSC – Internal Grant since January 2020. The Project aims to create an action plan to preserve Critically Endangered regional plants.
by Alina Cuza
Published in 2013 in Bissea, “The top 50 most threatened plants of Cuba” has inspired conservation actions across Cuba. It has been a call for conservationists, local communities, and stakeholders, gathered by the common interest of protecting the unique flora of Cuba.
by Maritza Deroncelé
Maritza Deroncelé is a psychologist turned into a conservationist. Currently the Natural Reserve “El Retiro” manager, she tells us how her work preserving the Aguacate cimarron, changed her life.
