CECONA

Achievements

• Continued to collect small-scale donations to make the first step, i.e. acquisition of a suitable property in Costa Rica, possible.
• Signing of the official contract in January 2006, making the Dutch foundation (Stichting Gaia) the official owner of 3 hectares of land near Manuel Antonio National Park.
• Set up of a sister foundation in Costa Rica to have a legal representative in that country.
• Developed strong ties with local businesses and wildlife conservation projects for support and future co-operation.
• Realisation of a strong board of recommendation for the Dutch foundation.
• Writing of many proposals for financial support.

Strenghts and Challenges

• We receive support from local businesses and people and will use a broad approach to realising our conservation goal through different interdepending activities (wildlife rescue, environmental education and scientific research)
• There's ample room for the development of scientific research which will enhance our influence in conservation matters; close co-operation with local people and enterprises; be the first business in Costa Rica to breed endangerd monkeys to release them in the wild (lots of media and scientific attention)
• Currently we still depend on a small number of financial sources, whereas we need considerable time (2 years) to reach break-even point

Plans for 2007

• November 2006: Art auction to raise the final amount of money needed to pay for the start-up phase.
• February 2007: start of the construction of the wildlife rescue centre.
• February 2007: myself moving to Costa Rica to oversee the whole construction phase and arrange the final permits from the government.
• July - August 2007: finalisation of the constructions and be operational

"Since the BID Challenge, free time seems to become rare. Life has taken a different pace and because of all the meetings with investors, universities, contacts from the BID Challenge and the many trips to Costa Rica to arrange many of the necessities for a succesful start, it has proven to be a very educational period. Getting closer to realising the goals is very challenging and rewarding."