2010 Innovation Award Finalist: Elemento Natural
Organization: Elemento Natural (Costa Rica)
Nominated by: Roberto Lizano, Elemento Natural (Organization Category)
Project Description:
The organization Elemento Natural, together with some friends, organized a photo expo, with pictures taken by indigenous children: it was called ‘The communities through the eyes of its children’. For that, we needed to raise money to provide cameras and to visit the communities to give instructions to the children. We chose 2 different schools (Rey Curre and Las Vegas), where we selected 22 students to participate. We gave them disposable cameras and asked them to take pictures of their homes, schools, pets, family, communities, nature.
After collecting the cameras, we assembled a group of experts to select the best 50 pictures. With them, we created an event in San Jose, in a cultural center. For the days of the event we brought the children for a unique weekend in town where they could enjoy amusement parks, movies, theater and the event itself: we also needed to raise funds for all of that, and we found some companies and friends that were kind enough to help us economically. The Photo expo had the sponsorship of the Culture Ministry.
After the main event, the expo has moved to other companies, to outreach a bigger population.
One of the main objectives is improving the awareness of our costarican indigenous communities, and facilitating the cultural exchange: the main event was a unique opportunity to do so, especially because we were able to show our city to the kids that had not been in the capital city before. Then, the education of the visitors of the expo is the other direction of the awareness we want to build.
The other big objective is to provide help and support to these two communities; we made bookmarks and postal cards with the same pictures that were chosen for the expo. By selling them, we are raising funds, so we can improve the infrastructure of the participating schools and bring technology to these locations (computers, internet, DVD’s). We are ready to start some retrofit work to bring electricity to Las Vegas School, and we are ready to purchase PC’s to replace defective equpment in Rey Curre School, and to bring the first ever computer to Las Vegas School.
The other means is that we created a tour that visits at least 3 different indigenous communities, even though they don’t have a good offer of services; and we are bringing tourists (consequently jobs) to their villages.
The tour visits Las Vegas School, where the tourist can meet the children and spend time playing with them, bring them any voluntary aid, swim in the river. We then go to Rey Curre for handcraft shopping (famous indigenous masks), and then we go to Terraba to a locally owned lodge. The next day we go to Boruca to an indigenous musuem, more handcraft shopping, and then we continue to the pre-columbian Sphere park. We use only local providers. We sell the tour at a very low margin price.
We think we found a creative approach to help, work with local communities and develop an interesting tourism product that also creates income to these communities.
School Teachers and Children
Student in a Class
>> See project description (in Spanish) and photos and videos of the photo exhibition
Thanks to Elemento Natural I had the opportunity to spend time with the kids during the expo as well as some weeks later on their own towns. There’s no way to describe to its full extend the way this kids are full of live, dreams, happiness and energy all of which they are willing to share with visitors. The communities are plenty of friendly people that welcome those that have been part of a society that basically have isolated them from Costa Rica’s reality. But truth is that this villages don’t have anything to envy from main cities as you can breathe the peace and beauty of their surroundings!
I loved the experience from start to end and hope to spend more time in these communities in the future so that some extra help can be brought to this places. As said before, kids full of dreams and energy is just to valuable not to provide them all the chances and opportunities good education brings. Keep it up Elemento!!
Elemento Natural has been a company who for so many years have done so many amazing things for not just the indigienous people of Costa Rica, but also to “City” Costa Ricans to see how our culture is so valued. I have had the honor of being a colleague, friend, and client at some times, with one of the founders, and I’m proud to say, they are doing such a great job. Go for it my friend!!! And keep showing us the value of the honor of living in such a great country!!!
Elemto Natural, thanks for your great contibution with our indegenous children. Thanks for your perseverance and constancy.
You are the best
Projects like this one, undertaken by Elemento Natural make a difference between people who want to live in a better world and people who make it happen. It has helped creating an awareness about indigenous reality in Costa Rica and represents an effort to improve their living conditions.
I congratulate Elemento Natural for being among the finalists and hope this will give them courage do more projects like this one!!
Elemento Natural is a small organization with a huge heart!!! we need more companies like this in Costa Rica and in the world.
Good luck!!!
It’s amazing how a small company can have such a big impact in our communities. Elemento Natural proves that you don’t need to have a huge company with huge resources to help, lend a hand and leave a positive footprint; you just need to want.
I had the opportunity to actively help during the organization of the event and the tours, and it has been a wonderful fulfilling experience, not only for me but for the children and their communities. Working together anything is possible, we need more companies like Elemento!
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I’ve been traveling with Elemento Natural since 2005 and the commitment they have to Eco Tourism and the indigenous people of Costa Rica is at the forefront of everything they do. My U.S. College students have been fortunate to experience Costa Rica in such a genuine way – they are forever changed when they return. Great work guys!
We at the Rainforest Alliance believe that Elemento Natural deserves to win the TIES Innovation in Ecotourism Award for their achievements in working and supporting indigenous communities in Costa Rica.
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