Hi, my name is Natalie and I'm working with a small sustainable fishing community in Costa Rica to reduce their carbon emissions, protect biodiversity and keep the fishers safe. Update: We only need $250 more for the marine radar!

I spent last semester studying sustainability and the environment in Costa Rica. While abroad, my class visited Chira Island to learn about sustainable fishing practices. Chira, a small Costa Rican Island located in the Nicoya gulf, is home to roughly 1,500 people. This small fishing community relies heavily on fishing for food and income. About 15 years ago, the community suffered the effects of overharvesting. To prevent this from happening again, they created the Asociación de Pescadores Cuerderos de Palito (APCP), a volunteer organization dedicated to promoting sustainable fishing practices. The Palito Restricted Fishing Area was created to protect the rocky corals surrounding the island and the many species that inhabit it.

The only type of fishing allowed in this area is hand-and-line, which limits the catch to a sustainable amount. Minimum hook sizes ensure that only mature fish are caught. With support from the community, local fish populations were restored. While the vast majority of the community follows the rules of the Palito Restricted Fishing Area, people from outside the island are not as respectful of the rules. They come in at night and use trawling nets and other harmful fishing methods, which can wipe out much of the fish population and marine life in one night.

To prevent this, the restricted fishing area must be monitored every night, year-round, a demanding job that falls on volunteers of APCP. Every night, no matter the weather or conditions, a volunteer is out on the patrol boat using gasoline driving in circles around the restricted fishing area to stop any illegal fishing. While patrolling is vital to the success of the restricted fishing area, it produces carbon emissions, is dangerous, expensive, and isn’t 100% effective.

One marine radar would allow the fishing association to effectively and efficiently patrol the entire fishing area while reducing carbon emissions, protecting biodiversity and food stability, and protecting the community's safety. All donations go directly towards purchasing the marine radar system to help the Chira fishing community.