Earth Restoration Project

Ecosystem: cloud forest; pre-montane evergreen, low montane and

high montane.

 

La Hesperia Biological Station and Reserve has been a protected area in the heart of the Toachi-Pilatón forest since 1985.  The station covers 814 hectares (2031 acres) and is located in Ecuador, South America in the western mountain range of the Andes. La Hesperia is part of two important bioregions, the Tropical Andes and the Chocó-Darién-Western Ecuador. Scientists consider these threatened bioregions two of the top five hotspots on earth because they have high levels of biodiversity and a large number of endemic species. With an altitude between 1100-2040 meters (3600-6700 ft), La Hesperia resides in three types of forests: pre-montane evergreen, low montane and high montane (cloud forest). Within the boundaries of the reserve there are 287 birds species, 40 mammals species, 63 genera of butterflies, among others (several lists available). The vegetation is typical of the cloud forest, with the highest diversity of epiphyte, several endangered tree species are reproduced in the nursery.

 

Some of the common animals are: White-fronted capuchin monkey, Tayra, Agouti, Paca, Peccari, Andean Cock-of-the-Rock Rupicola peruviana, Wattled Guan Aburria aburri, Plate-billed mountain-Toucan Andigena laminirostris,  Pale-mandible Aracari Pteroglossus erythropygius, Crimson-rumped Toucanet Aula corhynchus, Toucan Barbet Semnomis ramphastinus, Lineated Woodpecker Dryocopus lineatus.

Location

La Hesperia is located in the Pichincha province, 58 kilometers from Quito and is just outside of La Hesperia community. The community is on the Aloag-Santo Domingo road, eleven kilometers past the town of Tandapi (Cornejo Astorga on maps). Once in the village, you will see a stone arch, directly across from the school; that marks the entrace to the reserve. The accomodation is ten minutes by jeep (or thirty minutes on foot) from the entrace, about 1.5 km up a picturesque cobblestone road.

 

Goals

 

The work that they do at La Hesperia is extremely important in terms of preserving the biodiversity of the cloud forest and protecting local watersheds. They focus on protecting existing forests through reforestation, monitoring human activity and its impact, and environmental education. With the foundation, they plan to purchase land bordering the reserve to expand the protected area. La Hesperia is also striving to become a model of integrated farming where agricultural practices complement their primary objective of preserving the natural forest. Combining conservation and agriculture will enable them to sustain the reserve and promote economic activities that are environmentally friendly and beneficial for local communities.

 

La Hesperia has several major goals including

Protecting existing forest
Maintaining the reserve as an IBA (Important Bird Area)
Working toward sustainable development
Creating programs to foster community development
Restoring degraded areas within and outside the reserve
Educating the public about conservation and ecology
Conduction research
Sharing experiences with nature enthusiasts, local communities and volunteers.
For better achievement of their goals they are open to cooperation agreements with conservation and social institutions and are part of the Jatun Sacha Foundation reserve net and members of the Aves & Conservacion NGO (Ecuadorian partner of Bird Life International).

Volunteer Activities

A major part of volunteering is being willing to immerse yourself in another culture, from enjoying new food to taking part in traditional forms of work. At La Hesperia you will have the opportunity to do valuable work as you learn about the forest and the Ecuadorian way of life.

You will have the opportunity to participate on a number of conservation and sustainable agriculture projects within the reserve. These may include: forestry program (collecting seeds, nursery maintenance, trail maintenance, tree care and reforestation); research program (short and long-term projects on ecology and agriculture); raising animals and organic vegetable garden; community development (English classes at the local school, assistance at the local medical center); eco-construction (COB, bamboo, wood, depending on the time of the year). The staff offers weekly hikes, lectures and workshops.

Background and age do not matter when you want to work in conservation-there is always a job you can do and we all have a lot to learn

 

Volunteers can participate in the following activities:

 

1. Forestry Programme  The forestry programme is divided into two major activities: -

 

-Restoring Degraded Areas The station is working to restore several pastures through natural regeneration and by reforesting these pastures with tree species important to the natural environment. The main objectives of the programme are to cultivate plants in the nursery and to prepare the pastures for reforestation. Volunteers will assist in collecting and planting seeds, maintaining the nursery, and transplanting seedlings.

 

-Sustainable Wood Production Due to the worldwide demand for hardwood, it is important to plant trees for sustainable use, instead of cutting old-growth trees that belong to the natural forests. Since the steep geography of the region does not permit intensive agriculture and cattle farming, the best economic alternative is wood production. Also since some of these species are rare, cultivating them will help to maintain their genetic viability. At the station they are planting several species of trees for sustainable use, including mahogany, cedro, colorado, and tangaré. As they research the best methods for sustainable development, they will share their knowledge of agro-forestry with local communities to encourage and enable them to adopt a similar approach.

 

2. Sustainable agriculture  They are striving to make La Hesperia a model of integrated farming where agricultural practices promote preservation of the natural forest. Volunteers can participate in a range of ongoing projects that focus on animals (cattle, pigs, chickens, ducks, geese) and crops (bananas, papayas, beans, manioc, sugar cane, coffee, cacao) as part of a sustainable agriculture model. They can refine organic gardening techniques and be responsible for the ongoing production of biofood such as milk, bread, and vegetables.  They will also have the opportunity to produce their own food, taking crops grown at the reserve from the source to the plate.

 

3. Community Involvement One of their goals is to empower local communities, especially the La Esperie community located close to the station. It is a small village of 50 families with a two-room elementary school, a medical center, two carpentry shops, a small store, and a traditional sweets factory where they produce guava sweets, peanuts, and jams. Volunteers can foster community development through several projects:

 

Requirements

Volunteers are not tourist and are expected to work full days as any other employee of the station. You should be able to undertake strenous and sometimes tedious labor under basic conditions.

 

Education University study is not a prerequisite to acceptance into the program. However, prospective volunteers should have an interest in conservation and related human issues. For the research program it is neccesary to have university background.

 

Work Schedule You will work form 8.30am to 12.15pm and from 2.00pm to 5.00pm Free Weekends, passing one weekend volunteers have a “long weekend” (from Friday to Sunday). This is a good opportunity to travel around Ecuador and visit other ecosystems

 

Duration of Volunteer Work: La Hesperia requires volunteers to make a minimum time commitment of three weeks. Volunteers planning on staying in Ecuador longer than 90 days require a visa extension. The staff can assit volunteers on obtaining the extension once in Ecuador. If your stay is more than one month you could have the opportunity to coordinate and lead new volunteers.

 

Food, accommodation and costs:  Accommodation in shared rooms, running water, electricity, hot showers, excellent views of the forest, bedding provided, telephone for emergencies.  Offering a variety of vegetarian and non-vegetarian meals that includes traditional Ecuadorian food.

Volunteer Feedback
I was placed at La Hesperia an environmental project in the cloud forest of Ecuador. I was originally due to stay for 8 weeks but loved the place so much that I have stayed for double this time. I have to say that my time here will change the way in which I travel forever. My main focus at the reserve was the reforestation project which involved working in the seedling nursery which was not only growing trees for immediate use in reforestation projects and sustainable management projects but will also one day provide a genetic seedbank so that endangered, rare and native South American species may be used for reforestation projects by other reserves and projects in the future. I was also lucky enough to be able to venture into the secondary forest and start replanting these trees (primary species). This is a great way to get back to nature and when you start to see the endangered palm species that you have been planting regenerating naturally, it is a really rewarding feeling.

Other work on the reserve involved the organic vegetable garden. At the moment the plan is to become self sufficient but in time it is hoped they will be able to provide some organic produce. This is some time off as currently there is not a great deal of awareness in Ecuador about the benefits not only to the consumer but to the environment by organic production techniques.

I also had the opportunity to teach English in the nearby school (many goodbye tears) and to become involved in the construction of the new volunteer house.

This reserve has been an incredible experience for me. I not only feel like I have really become a part of this community but I have also affected a real and positive role. The things that make this place so special are not just its beautiful location and wide and varied works that you can become involved in, the thing that makes it really special are the people who run it. They make sure that they take the time to talk to each new volunteer and find out why there are there and what they hope to get out of the experience. They will always find a way to tailor each persons volunteer experience to encompass their interests. Many others have gone on to other reserves and all agree that it this personal touch that makes La Hesperia so special.

Philippa Boland - UK volunteer 

 

 

Financing: Volunteers must pay their own food and lodging expenses, including airfare to Ecuador and living costs while in the country.  The programme costs which include your lodging in cabins shared with other volunteers and researchers, as well as 3 meals a day are:

 

3 weeks - 180 GBP (315 USD), 6 weeks - 328 GBP (575 USD) and you can stay for a maximum period of 12 weeks, which is 620 GBP (1095 USD).

 

In addition to the programme fee, a deposit of 110 GBP (192 USD) payable to Earth Restoration Service is required to secure your place on the project.

 

Placements are available all throughout the year!  Please email us if you have specific dates in mind.

 

If you wish to apply to join this programme as a volunteer, please click on the banner "volunteer for this project" to access the application form.