La Amistad International Park

Theo ‘26
Today was our fourth day in Cerro Punta. I started the morning at 8:00 a.m. with scrambled eggs, hojaldres, and juice. At 9:00, we took a bus to La Amistad International Park, which stretches across Panama and Costa Rica and is the largest protected area in Central America, covering over 1.4 million acres.

At the park, we heard from officials about the biodiversity in the forest. I learned that nearly 50% of Panama’s bird species are found there. They also talked about threats to the ecosystem, including fires, hunting, and disruption of natural waterways. A big focus was on involving the local community through education and making conservation more accessible.

We returned to the hotel for lunch, where I had salad and lasagna. In the afternoon, Yiris from MiAmbiente helped us create posters based on what we learned, and we presented them in Spanish. We also played a wildlife conservation-themed bingo game for prizes from BioRural.

After that, I finished my lab report from my research at ITEC while others went into town. Later, Zavier, Iris, and I interviewed Yiris for our interdisciplinary poetry project. I ended the day in the sauna and weight room, had pizza for dinner, and then relaxed with everyone while we watched a movie and worked on our projects.

Hasta luego,
Theo ‘26
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