Grace Unda’s initiative is aimed at restoring and conserving vegetation that has exceptional water absorption properties and retention in the Cerro Gato Watershed. Her main strategy is to plant a mixture of Guadua Bamboo and a native and endangered shrub species, the Galapagos Miconia ( Miconia Robinsoniana). The Guadua stabilizes soil and prevents erosive erosion while the Miconia increases the soil’s capacity to retain water.
Grace also received guidance and support from the Galapagos Park Directorate. They donated native plants in addition to Galapagos Miconia. These include white wild coffee (Psychotria Rufipes), Scalesia trees (Scalesia pendulata), and Galapagos Guava (Psidium gallapageium). These plants are important to the local ecosystems in Galapagos because they provide food and shelter for wildlife. These plantings are strategic and help to strengthen the plant cover, restore indigenous plants, and reestablish hydrological cycles, which ensures the sustainability of water resources for the area. They also help restore habitats and encourage the growth of forests, which contributes to the mitigation of climate change.
The restoration of the local, freshwater source that is so important on San Cristobal Island shows how effective environmental solutions can be achieved through collaboration between institutions. Dr. Our Director of Conservation Jorge Carrion emphasizes the importance of community involvement in ensuring sustainability of conservation projects on the Galapagos. He says that by empowering local communities, we can build a better future for the Galapagos and the rest of the world. We promote a development model which balances the needs of the economy, the social and the environment.
This project shows what can be accomplished when organizations and communities unite to achieve a common goal, which is to preserve the Galapagos Islands’ unique ecosystems and services.
