Arenal Report

La Reserva Forest Foundation 2011 calendars are available online (for U.S. residents) at www.shoplrff.org or by calling 8856-2977 for delivery in Costa Rica. The calendars display flora and fauna of the Arenal-Tenorio rain forest in photos taken by La Reserva volunteers. The calendars cost $15 each, with discounts offered for larger orders.

La Reserva, creation of former dairy and cattle farmers Roberta Ward Smiley and Daniel Spreen Wilson, works to reverse deforestation and instead create hospitable environments for species “forced out by 80 years of farming and 20 years of real estate development.” The thousands of indigenous trees planted under the auspices of La Reserva (12,000 in 2010) regenerate forest corridors in as little as eight years, thanks to the wet tropical climate of the Arenal region.

La Reserva has several reforestation projects under way at present, including three involving members of the Maleku indigenous group. In addition to buying calendars, one can help by donating via the website at www.lrff.org or through projects listed with Global Giving at www.global giving.org/projects.