GUYA - first “own reforestation” in Ecuador!

S ince July 1st, 2021 we have our first “own afforestation” in Ecuador! For this we have partnered with the non-profit Ecuadorian foundation YAKUM merged.

Sebastian met its founder, Nicholas Ovenden, during his last stay in Ecuador. “Nick” works with the local, indigenous communities, manages the projects in a very cool way and is always on site himself to closely monitor the progress of the projects and to be hands-on.

With Nick we chose an area that was cleared many years ago in order to then use it for cattle breeding. However, this area has not been used for a good 10 years. We are now reforesting the area together with YAKUM with a "food forest". We do this by planting 100 different plant species and a total of 10,000 trees on the 10-hectare land that now belongs to the community.

So that you can get an impression of "why all this" and what we are doing exactly, how the project will run and what the costs will be - we want to compile and show you the details here in the article how you can support the project .

COLLABORATION BETWEEN GUYA AND THE FUNDACIÓN YAKUM

On May 25, 2021 in the city of Tena in Ecuador, the cooperation between Sebastian Freidank, the legal representative of GUYA - Guayusa GmbH, and Nicholas Ovenden, the legal representative of Fundación YAKUM, was sealed with the signing of an agreement. The agreement is initially valid for three years and can be extended or changed by mutual agreement after a subsequent evaluation of the results. Nicholas and Sebastian have agreed on the following details.

BACKGROUND OF THE COLLABORATION

With this project, GUYA and YAKUM want to work together for the preservation of the forest in the Amazon region and for the rights of the indigenous population in Ecuador.

Both organizations believe that the well-being of the indigenous community is directly related to the quality of the forests in which they live. Nick and Sebastian believe that planting a 'Food Forest' with 100 species of fruit, nut, palm, medicinal and crop plants is of great benefit to the indigenous community as well as protecting the forest and local wildlife benefit is. Both parties believe that the regenerative cultivation and subsequent sale of Guayusa, which is popular with the indigenous community, also contributes to the well-being of the community. Nick and Sebastian agree that gaining food sovereignty is of great importance for the indigenous community and their cultural regeneration.

The project aims to ensure that all stakeholders - GUYA, YAKUM, the Kichwa community and wildlife - benefit from the collaboration and cultivation of the "Food Forest".

GOALS OF COLLABORATION

The 10,000 trees are to be planted in the Cotundo region by December 2022. With the cultivation of the 100 species, the soil heals and the degraded ecosystem recovers.

Since GUYA and YAKUM alone will need quite a long time to implement the project, joint marketing activities are intended to boost the sale of Guayusa, which in turn will make it possible to promote the planting of the bio-diverse "Food Forest".

WOULD YOU LIKE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT GUAYUSA AND CLIMATE-FRIENDLY CULTIVATION?

CLIMATE FRIENDLY CULTIVATION OF GUAYUSA

OBLIGATIONS OF COOPERATION PARTNERS

GUYA will donate part of its profits to YAKUM to support YAKUM in establishing and maintaining "Food Forests" in Kichwa communities in the Amazon region of Ecuador. GUYA will transfer donations to YAKUM on a quarterly basis.

GUYA will create a video profile of this joint initiative with YAKUM to keep its community up to date on the project development via social media.

GUYA will initially donate 2,400 USD to YAKUM. This amount corresponds to the annual costs that have to be paid for organic certification in Germany. In the course of this, GUYA will dispense with the organic certification in the future, since from our point of view the bureaucratic act is in the foreground here and there is less actual testing and control of the products. Instead, we do our own testing to ensure that no pesticides have been used. We know exactly where our ingredients come from. We only buy from farmers who grow in permaculture. That's why we'll save the costs in the future and prefer to invest the money in this project.

YAKUM will use the generated GUYA donations to establish and maintain the "Food Forests" in the province of Napo together with the Kichwa community. The cost per tree including 4 years of maintenance is 4 USD.

The first project will be in the Sacha Waysa community. YAKUM and the community will collect and germinate the seeds of 100 species - including Guayusa - set up tree nurseries, then plant the trees in "Food Forests" and establish them there permanently. Once the area in Sacha-Waysa is planted, YAKUM will begin similar work in the surrounding communities, as GUYA funding continues to permit.

YAKUM will document the work in the “Food Forests” with photos and videos and will also provide testimonies from community members directly related to the supported work. These materials are used for marketing.

All trees are germinated and planted within a maximum of 10 months after receipt of donation. YAKUM will provide GUYA with technical and accounting reports twice a year. YAKUM reserves the right to withhold up to 10 percent per dollar donated to cover its administration and overhead costs.

HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT THE PROJECT

1. Buy GUYA Guayusa tea :) For every pack of GUYA Guayusa tea sold, a donation of 5 cents goes to YAKUM.
2. With every purchase you also have the option to make an additional donation during the checkout process.
3. Even independently of a purchase, you can register at any time via PayPal contribute to the project with a donation.