Endemic Seeds Bank to empower women and girls

My experience in planting trees is very pretty. I have always wanted to see my town full of trees. I have seen my family and other people cut the trees, they see it as a business, and I get very sad because of this. My intention is to continue with the trees nursery and collect more variety of seeds and motivate the children and their families to grow trees, plant them and protect them. I had no previous knowledge, nor experience in this. Thanks to Na Bolom’s project I am learning. Na Bolom’s team shared with me their knowledge and I am learning about the process and every stage of the tree's production and growth. In Yo’onik we learn with the children, they already know how to collect the seeds and protect them and grow trees and plant them, they know about the different kinds of trees and the soil every tree needs.

The children are learning the importance of the trees, they are part of the activities, they love to participate, and they are conscious kids who like to take care of and keep the trees alive. If they see someone damage a tree they defend it, the children take the trees we produce in Yo’onik to their houses to plant them there, they know that they have the responsibility of keeping them alive and seeing them grow.

 “Mi experiencia en plantar arbolitos ha sido muy bonito, de mi parte siempre he querido ver a mi pueblo con muchos árboles.

Ya que he visto a familiares y personas que solo se dedican a cortarlo, lo ven como un negocio y me da tristeza ver eso, tengo la intención de poder seguir con el vivero y tener más variedades de árboles y así motivar a los niños y familiares a plantar árboles, ver nacer a un nuevo arbolito es lo más bonito que he visto, no tenía conocimientos suficientes de como recolectar y seleccionar las semillas, gracias a los conocedores y a los que se dedican a sembrar árboles he aprendido un poco, y con los de Na Bolom han sido los que me comparten los procesos de como se tiene que realizar cada etapa de crecimiento de los arbolitos. Y en Yo'onik junto con los niños vamos aprendiendo, ya son conocedores de como se siembra un arbolito, como se deben de cuidar y qué tipos de tierra necesita un arbolito.

Los niños saben la importancia de los arbolitos, se integran en las actividades, les gusta participar son niños muy conscientes en cuidar y mantener vivos los árboles y lo defienden si ven a alguien maltratar a un árbol, los niños se llevan los árboles para sembrarlo en sus casas y saben que es una responsabilidad de ellos mantenerlo vivo y cuidarlo mientras crece el arbolito.” Vikky

Vikky has participated in different projects; the endemic seeds bank is one of her favourites. She works accompanying children in another nonprofit organization in her community, Zinacantan, where they help children complete their education by teaching them the things that they don’t learn at school. Yo’onik teamed up with Na Bolom before the pandemic to start the trees nurseries project. As it was closed and the children started collecting seeds before the lockdown, Vikky made it her own project to take care of the seeds while the children were gone. Today Yo’onik has a tree's nursery and a seeds bank. The kids are collecting seeds from the surroundings and producing trees to reforest their community.

Help Vikky continue with her dream of seeing her community full of trees.

You can continue donating to the project through GlobalGiving and become a monthly donor.

Did you know that GlobalGiving gives extra donations to organizations with monthly donors?

Just follow the instructions in GlobalGiving's webpage. 

Links:

• https://www.facebook.com/na.bolom