Trees for Seas: Season 1
Imagine for a moment an ocean where cargo is sailed by wooden boats. Imagine a world where shipbuilding is regenerative. Here at AstilleroVerde, we are building Ceiba, a 45m wooden, cargo sailing ship. And we are planting trees. Deforestation is responsible for 10% of all greenhouse gas emissions. The shipping industry is responsible for 3%.
Our mission is to inspire change in an industry fraught with environmentally damaging practices. Our efforts involve planting native species, fruit trees, and tropical hardwoods, including threatened and endangered species, on degraded properties near Monteverde. We believe in a circular economy and sustainable development and we exist to make those principles a reality. We invite you to be part of our journey.
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
• Approx. 200 sustainably sourced trees felled for the build of Ceiba so far
• 2,000 trees to be planted this season
• 2 properties, 2 hectares for reforestation in 2020
• Goal of 12,000 trees planted by the time Ceiba is sailing.
REFORESTATION SITES
Finca el Jardín, San Luis
The farm is a total of 38 hectares at 985m above sea level. Between 12 and 20 hectares of this are pasture. Approximately 1 hectare has been designated for reforestation in 2020. With a history of being a coffee plantation until 1980 and then cattle pasture, this land has been organic since 2008. Since 2014, a few trees have been planted and the survivors include cortez, amarillo, laurel, roble, raspa, and marasano. Desired outcomes for this land are a biodynamic coffee plantation shaded by the trees that we will plant; a lagoon that the rich variety of birdlife who frequent the farm will visit; benches and tables; peaceful, positive energy; and perhaps a camping area.
10-15% of these trees are meant to be sustainably harvested for marine grade shipbuilding timber.
Dr. Sybil Gotsch’s Land
At 1,100m, this property is 2.6 hectares, mostly degraded pasture with some young secondary forest close to the stream. An experienced tree climber who studies epiphytes, Dr Sybil Gotsch’s vision for this land is to restore ecosystem services. Planting only native species in the forest designated area, the intention is to rehabilitate the degraded soil and purify the stream, bring back pollinator gardens and grow a forest that could potentially turn into a biological corridor.
This will be the first wave of a multi-strata food forest, pioneers that will eventually support the growth of native, tropical hardwoods.
Tree Planting Partnerships
We are proud to be working in collaboration with amazing partners to make this project possible and would like to express our gratitude to the institutions and donors whose generosity has made 2020’s tree planting a reality. Our heartfelt thanks go out to the Monteverde Institute (MVI), the Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE), and Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) who are providing the seedlings to be planted, and to sailing cargo vessel Avontuur for the extremely generous emission offsetting donation. We look forward to expanding our reach through new partnerships and collaborations with interested partners.
See more photos of this planting campaign here.
Astillero Verde is not only committed to planting trees but also to making sure that those trees thrive and reach maturity. For this reason our budget accounts for a 5 year period of monitoring and care for each tree planted. Contact us if you are interested to learn more about our planting and monitoring programs, or if you would like to support these campaign.