This past summer, Alliance Affiliated Artist Audrey Carver traveled to Costa Rica with Amigos de Las Americas as a project supervisor working with high school students. See how she took lessons she learned with the Climate Science Alliance to inspire her environmentally themed programming.
“Cuida los animales - take care of the animals.”
“No deja su basura, los arboles tienen almas tambien - Do not leave trash, the trees have souls too”
“En el bosque, no hay internet, pero te aseguro que hay mejor conexion - In the forest there is no internet, but you are guaranteed a better connection”
This past summer, Alliance Affiliated Artist Audrey Carver traveled to Costa Rica with Amigos de Las Americas as a project supervisor working with high school students. Amigos de Las Americas is a program that helps build young leaders through collaborative community development and immersion in cross-cultural experiences.
During her tenure, Audrey was responsible for overseeing three groups of students ages 13-15, living with them for 2 weeks in the local, rural communities. A portion of this program required her to plan and facilitate activities for volunteers to do at the schools with the local kids. Inspired by her work with the Climate Science Alliance and our Climate Kids program, Audrey chose to gear the activities towards the environment.
Similar to much of the work she has done in collaboration with the Climate Science Alliance, Audrey worked with the students and a local artist to create a mural highlighting different plants and animals from Costa Rica in a previously abandoned park.
Audrey reflects on her time in Costa Rica and how the people’s passion for the environment and its protection was an inspiration for her:
“I was blown away by how many people cared about the environment. Recycling, minimizing plastic, and general environmental awareness seems like an extra step in the US, something special. In Costa Rica, however, it seems to be the default. Considering the bountiful ecosystems of the country, the blue butterflies, vibrant banana leaves and flowering trees, toucans and chattering monkeys, that line the roadsides and cover the mountains, I can understand why everyone from preschoolers to Uber drivers want to protect it. In fact, it has been considered by various organizations as one of the most sustainable countries in the world, and is working towards carbon neutrality by 2021.
This kind of thinking, however, should not seem so foreign to me. Coming home to my own beautiful (though slightly less exotic) landscapes, I want random citizens to be appalled at its destruction. I want preschoolers to be able to explain climate change country-wide, and for our road signs to promote environmental respect and responsibility. We need the pura vida mindset here too, not just in a select few, but in all.”
We are proud and excited to highlight the work that Audrey accomplished in Costa Rica and our continued collaboration.
To learn more about Audrey’s work, please visit: https://audreycarverart.squarespace.com
To learn more about the Climate Science Alliance’s Affiliated Artist Program, please visit: https://www.climatesciencealliance.org/building-community
