It’s not the jungle… they’re mangroves!
Our trip may not take us to the jungles of Costa Rica, but we have visited the ecologically valuable mangrove forests of Chira Island – the largest remaining mangrove forests in Costa Rica’s Pacific...
View ArticleCeviche
After harvesting pianguas (it’s hard word navigating those mangrove trees and roots, and retracting your limbs from the mud), we indulged in some ceviche, right there in the boat!
View ArticleSupporting a women’s cooperative
Our ucalgarycares program in Chira Island is never complete without a trip to the artisans’ cooperative in Jicaro. This cooperative (like La Amistad cabins and like the Pianguas association) started...
View ArticleNational Conservation Area – Isla San Lucas
An uninhabited island in the Gulf of Nicoya – a formal penal colony!Each year, we try to visit a new place in and around Chira Island. This year, the VIDA Association organized a trip to another island...
View Articleucalgarycares Chira Island Project 2013: Day 12
We woke up at 4:30am today, when the roosters just started crowing and the dogs were in deep sleep after an entire night of consistent barking at each other. We arrived at Palito beach by 5:30am ready...
View ArticleThe final goodbye or just a new beginning?
Sarifa, working with cement earlier in the program. The classroom is not nearly complete as we prepare for the dedication ceremony with the school. We leave Chira tomorrow morning. It’s our last day on...
View ArticleCommunity-Based Rural Tourism on Chira Island
When the average tourist spends $100, only $5 of that stays in the local community. Our ucalgarycares program in Costa Rica focuses on community-based rural tourism, as well as ethical international...
View ArticleCelebrating 4 years at the Montero y Palito School, Isla Chira
Check out the series of projects our students have worked on with the Escuela Montero y Palito over the last four years of the ucalgarycares program. Click to view slideshow.
View Article“61% of Millenn…
“61% of Millennials, born between 1979-2001, feel personally responsible for making a difference in the world.”
View ArticleGearing up for another year in New Orleans with ucalgarycares
Click to view slideshow. For those of you heading to New Orleans with the Food and Justice or Building Healthy Communities teams, here’s a glimpse into the program from last year.
View ArticleStudents get Ready to Volunteer as Reading Week Approaches
UCalgary students are packing their bags as we speak in preparation for their service-learning Reading Week adventures! The 2013-2014 academic year brings four new programs through the Centre for...
View ArticleThoughts Leading up to Homelessness at Home
Soon enough I’ll be away from the comforts of my home and sleeping on the floor in a sleeping bag along with the rest of the group for the ucalgarycares Homelessness at Home program. As I write with...
View ArticleCan we do Justice through Food?
The Food & Justice team visited Our School at Blair Grocery (OSBG) today and met Nat, justice-minded and enthusiastic urban farmer. He eagerly listened to each team member’s interests and goals,...
View ArticleMeeting people where they’re at: Learning about life on the streets
I was asked to do a more in-depth blog to describe our workshops and preparation leading up to this experience. I wasn’t quite sure how to approach this: should I simply narrate the fundraising we did,...
View ArticleEntering Terra Nova: Reflections Before H@H Day 1
My name’s Isabel and I am a third year Health Sciences student. I was born and raised in Calgary and have had an interest in the topic of homelessness ever since high school. A friend took me along...
View ArticleYes, I wanted to do this: My introduction and reasons for participating in...
My name is Danielle and I am a third year Health and Society student here at the University of Calgary. I’m also a participant this year’s ucalgarycares Homelessness at Home (aka H@H) project, which...
View ArticleWho Dat! Grow Dat!
On the second day of our trip, we visited Grow Dat Youth Farm, which was created as an urban agricultural program to promote youth empowerment and to bring together a community of diverse individuals....
View ArticleDigital Stories 2014
This week a team of eight ucalgarycares students is participating in the ucalgarycares Youth by Youth: A Digital Storytelling Project. The project is a collaboration between Antyx Community Arts, The...
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