Community Development

The following projects are joint ventures between Third Millennium Alliance and the community of Camarones, which is located 3km down the road from the Jama-Coaque Ecological Reserve.

Community Agroforestry Training: As a continuation of a pilot project organized by Third Millennium Alliance in 2008-2009, in 2010 we co-sponsored weekly agroforestry training for the community of Camarones along with the U.S. Peace Corps. On-site instruction and technical assistance was provided by agroforestry professionals from the Universidad Technológica Equinoccial from Santo Domingo.

Community Learning Center: Local leader "Don" Colon Vaca and Third Millennium Alliance jointly built a learning center in the community of Camarones to not only educate local children and young adults in ecology and conservation, but also begin preparing younger members of the community for careers in agroforestry, eco-tourism, and scientific research.

Organic Coffee-Cooperative: With much help from Third Millennium Alliance interns and local families, we have created a community coffee co-operative, under the label of Café Montubio, which grows, harvests, and commercializes organic coffee on a national scale. Coffee is a forest-friendly product because it needs the shade of a forest canopy to grow well, and is one of the most lucrative incentives for agro-forestation.

Community Reforestation (Micro-Forests): Micro-Forests is a pilot program by Third Millennium Alliance that provides seedlings, technical assistance, and wage subsidies to local farmers to reforest small patches of land with native hardwood trees combined with food trees and crops. You can learn more at Reforestation.