Local Field Assistant, Jorge Abella, conducts a nest excavation (Photo: G. Borges)
Turtle Love team members organize a marine plastics awareness event in collaboration with local partners (Photo: M. Grané)
Green turtle hatchling crawling to the sea at Playa Tres (Photo: G. Borges)
Turtle Love works alongside residents of nearby communities as part of three interconnected community involvement initiatives:
LOCAL COMMUNITIES
We develop local capacity to protect the nesting beach by training and hiring field assistants from nearby communities. This professional development opportunity empowers local people to act as conservation ambassadors in their communities and help protect the resources that sustain them.
PUBLIC OUTREACH
We foster appreciation for the intrinsic and economic value of local species and ecosystems by engaging adults and children from the community. We organize public outreach events and conduct environmental education activities at local schools. We fund excursions to the nesting beach for local school groups using revenue from paying volunteers, giving children the opportunity to view and develop a personal connection to living sea turtles.
ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES
We build capacity of local host families to provide homestay experiences to volunteers who pay a daily fee in exchange for lodging and meals. We recruit paying national and international volunteers to help with nesting beach monitoring activities, and we connect volunteers with host families. This provides residents with economic opportunities based on sustainable use in lieu of extractive use of sea turtles while supporting Turtle Love’s efforts by supplying funds and personnel.
Turtle Love’s outreach and education activities primarily engage community members from Parismina. Our outreach events also reach residents of Tortuguero and visitors from other parts of Costa Rica, as well as international visitors.
Donate
Help us protect sea turtles! Please donate to support Turtle Love’s sea turtle conservation and community outreach activities.
Leatherback hatchling being released after a nest excavation (Image: M. Grané)
Your donation will be used to support the following:
- Supplies used to monitor sea turtle nesting activity (for example, tagging equipment for individual sea turtle identification, field notebooks for data collection, headlamps for night surveys).
- Materials for environmental education and outreach events at local schools and community centers (art supplies, books, games, posters, pamphlets).
- English lessons and capacity-building workshops for local families hosting international volunteers.
- Visits to the nesting beach for local school children.
- Room, board, and salaries for local research assistants and staff.
Please donate to help us protect sea turtles!
We partner with Amigos of Costa Rica to accept tax-deductible donations in the United States. Please visit Turtle Love’s dedicated page to donate online.