Profiles from the Peninsula is a series dedicated to spotlighting the partners who make up the Baja Working Group, and their projects. This week’s profile is on Terra Peninsular’s Youth Club of Nature Photographers - Huellas Volcánicas.
Puedes leer este blog en español aquí.
Profiles from the Peninsula is a series dedicated to spotlighting the partners who make up the Baja Working Group, and their projects. Each week, we will bring you a new profile in the form of a blog like this one. More information about the working group can be found here.
Since 2018, young people from the Bay of San Quintín with a common interest in the environment have come together to form the Youth Club of Nature Photographers - Huellas Volcánicas. Supported by Terra Peninsular, Huellas Volcánicas is a club with the goal of educating local youth about the unique natural and cultural heritage of the Bay through the use of photography.
Photographer: Alejandro Arias
The Club participated in the Climate Science Alliance’s Inaugural Youth Climate Challenge, where their team took on the challenge of identifying the climate impacts happening in their own communities. Together, they investigated climate strategies and solutions to formulate action plans to implement in their community. The team explained their choice of using photography, “by taking these pictures, we aim to share the inspiration and hope needed to make a change in our community.”
The Bay of San Quintín is a wondrous place, home to at least ten plants that are found nowhere else in the world, and a critical stop-over area for tens of thousands of migratory birds every year. Those who call this region home also depend on the Bay for the natural resources it provides, such as its abundance of oysters. The Bay also safeguards the stories and artifacts of the region’s Kiliwa and Cochimi heritage. The name Huellas Volcánicas means “Volcanic Traces”, a nod to the 13 extinct volcanoes found in the Bay.
With such abundant life, photography is a natural way of connecting people with this incredible place and instilling a deeper appreciation of all it has to offer. The photographs from the Club’s members have been displayed at events in Mexico and the US, including our recent 2020 San Diego Climate Summit and the 2019 Southwest Tribal Climate Change Summit, expanding appreciation and understanding of the uniqueness of San Quintín and the need to protect it.
The Baja Working Group is a collaboration between the Climate Science Alliance and the International Community Foundation. Learn more here.