We continue our journey on the Osa Peninsula at the Osa Conservation Tree Nursery. I had the pleasure of the meeting the arborist, Mairon, or Titi, as he prefers to be called. Titi is passionate about trees. He showed me around the expansive tree nursery where Osa is growing a 280 different tree species.

These saplings will eventually be taken to one of the 300 partner farms that Osa works with to support the development of riparian corridors. Their goal is to regenerate the native landscape to support wildlife, farmers, and those who depend upon the farms. Having a wildland corridor that connects through a farm, allows farmers to grow more lucrative crops such as vanilla beans or honey. As they tend to pollinators or vanilla bean vines, the bees and plants themselves then become a part of the regenerating forest. Each farm becomes a circle of care.

Back at the nursery, Titi is focused on planting hundreds of seedlings and tending to their initial growth under close observation. Osa works to revive even the most stubborn of tree species such as the Magnolia Hueteri, that is known to be difficult to cultivate at first.

When I stood in the nursery, I felt hope for a life on this planet that continues to be green and vibrant. Even in the great uncertainties of life on this planet as it seems to devolve in front of our very eyes, I think of these trees, ever continuously planted in an effort to feed future humans and monkeys alike. One day, I hope to be able to return to see some of these trees as they reach old age. Perhaps, centuries from now, they will be regarded as some of the old growth elders that have witnessed the regeneration of all life on this planet.

The Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica is a land of ecological resplendence. Not only is it well cared for under the protection of Corcovado National Park, it is also looked after by a biological corridor and conservation campus called Osa Conservation.

I had the immense pleasure of traveling to Osa Conservation last summer to spend a week learning about all of their work in conservation, native plant regeneration, and biodiversity protection. It was a life-changing experience.

The EarthStory Podcast continues in our third season featuring an enlightening conversation with the campus director of Osa, Eleanor Flatt. Eleanor shares about what it is like to live in the rainforest and what Osa is learning about biodiversity in their continuing work. Eleanor started out working in Costa Rica for a two month internship. Fast-forward ten years: she is still living, working, and advocating for the renewal of biodiversity in this extraordinary place.

Stay tuned for more videos sharing the work of the Osa Conservation Tree Nursery and Regenerative farm in the coming days.

Happy Winter Solstice!

We are observing the longest night of the year by revisiting a collection of music, stories, and poetry contributed some of our storytellers. On this long night, we are holding space for the darkness, the waiting, and the possibilities that can only emerge from the dark.

With gratitude for the co-creators of Solstice Stories:

Story sharing by: Youssef Ismael, Alrie Middlebrook, and Vicente Moreno

Music performed by: Michelé Crowder, Viveka Hall-Holt, Tess McCarty, Zoë García, and Grace Alexander.

Poetry by: Robert Hasselblad and Will Rand