 Daily news from the Canaries and the islands' biggest English language newspaper on-line  |  |  |     |
 The people who make a difference in the Canary Islands Valerio del Rosario Martín, Owner, El Cardón – Environmental education Showing the world It’s a cause for admiration and some healthy envy when someone is as joyfully happy in their work as Valerio del Rosario Martín, but he claims that his environmental education business, “is the excuse to do what we enjoy doing”.  Valerio del Rosario Martín - Born: Buenavista, Tenerife - 1972 It is this latter area in which Valerio and various associates and later employees have excelled, so much so that this year the company is celebrating its tenth anniversary. This year they have begun a new programme of routes especially designed for tourists This fun, dynamic and very different way of explaining the world about us was first expressed by Scottish born American citizen, John Muir. In 1871, while living and working near Yosemite Valley, Muir recorded in his notebook, “I’ll interpret the rocks, learn the language of flood, storm and the avalanche. I’ll acquaint myself with the glaciers and wild gardens, and get as near the heart of the world as I can.” He then passed on this knowledge to others and it was this spirit of investigation, conservation and diffusion which inspired the world’s first interpretative guide service in the Yellowstone National Park. In Spain, the first such service was begun in Teide National Park and it is a method which is widely recognised as one of the most effective in environmental education. According to the Association of Heritage Interpretation the aim is to, “reveal hidden stories and meanings; bring places, objects and ideas to life; create thought-provoking and memorable experiences; connect us with our natural and cultural heritage; deepen our understanding and expand our horizons.” It is the, “art of helping people explore and appreciate our world”. It was this dream that Valerio and two friends, Sonia and Yaye turned into a business when the Taller Escuela ended starting an environmental association which then became a company that they also called El Cardón (www,elcardon.com). They started offering guided walks, summer camps for children, environmental education courses for schools and working on projects for the public use and enjoyment of the Teno Rural Park. The first few years were tough as they are in any business and for various family and economic reasons the women had to drop out, but Valerio stuck in there and with grit, determination, dedication and a lot of hard effort, he made it work, picking up along the way a hard-won post graduate qualification in heritage interpretation. Nowadays, the company offers a whole gamut of environmental options and they are constantly coming up with new plans. The most visible sections of their operations are the guided routes which they prepare for individuals or groups as well as regular routes for Icod de los Vinos, Santiago de Teide and San Juan de la Rambla councils, subsidised by the appropriate departments in each. They also offer themed routes for bird watching, night routes for star gazing, an ascent of Teide, ethnographic routes where local artisans will give displays of how to make roof tiles or basketwork for example or there may be an exhibition of the salto del pastor, a method used by the shepherds to scale and descend ravines at a rapid pace. There are also visits to cheese making establishments and of course tastings, wine, gastronomic and cultural routes. The active tourism range includes visits to volcanic tubes, ravine descents, mountain bikes, caving, climbing, abseiling, orientation, archery, routes by kayak, boat trips for whale watching, guided routes for divers and other sports activities in the open air. This year they have begun a new programme of routes especially designed for tourists, every Tuesday in the famous Montes del Agua in the north, then a changing programme for each Saturday in the month. The first Saturday is dedicated to a walk through the Teide National Park, the second through the world famous Masca ravine, the third through the volcanic tube complex at the Cueva de San Marcos and the fourth to a trip by kayak off the Los Gigantes cliffs at Punta de Teno. In addition the company runs the Bolico mountain refuge, similar to a youth hostel but available for all ages, and lodged in a stunningly converted old farmhouse in the heart of the Teno Rural Park (www.alberguebolico.com), they have a reservation centre for quality rural accommodation in the area (www.tenoturismorural.com), an information centre and sales point for local crafts and hikers’ needs in La Venta in Buenavista’s main town square where they also offer mountain bikes for hire. They continue with the school education classes and children’s summer camps and now also manage work camps for environmental projects in the area for young volunteers from all over the world as well as organising challenge excursions or short stay camps for company employees. El Cardón regularly organise workshops, talks and games for fiestas and at present are developing a kind of bouncy castle type game which helps children understand their surroundings more. Whilst they started in the Teno Rural Park they now work all over the Canaries in the open air and in visitors’ centres, historical buildings and museums. Their full time staff now consists of about 10 people but can be fairly elastic depending on the season. They employ fully qualified specialists in environmental education and heritage interpretation, tourism, leisure and free time monitors, nature guides, illustrators and graphic designers. The latter help them to provide a huge range of interpretative panels, teaching aids for schools, guides, information pamphlets for courses, posters and a long etcetera. They are one of the first points of call when the islands’ authorities are looking for someone to design for example a teachers’ guide on educating kids about how to recycle and deal with rubbish in an environmentally friendly way or their current work in progress which is how to prevent fires. Valerio thrives on innovation and new challenges, “it helps to charge the batteries” he grinned. His personal challenge for the next two years is as a monitor for a new Escuela Taller to help train up 12 youngsters in Icod de los Vinos to develop, protect and show the resources of their area – the Drago tree, the Cueva del Viento in addition to doting on his wife and young daughter and continuing running his busy and successful company. “We consider ourselves successful. It’s not about how much money you make,” he stated firmly, “it’s about a job well done, carried out with principles and standards and a firm involvement with and commitment to the environment”. By Sheila Collis
| more... La Laguna - 03.02.2012 - The owner of a pack of pit-bulls that attacked a man and his dog while they were walking in a La Laguna park is being sought by police. more... Canary Islands - 03.02.2012 - Although temperatures in some parts of the Canaries are noticeably lower, the islands are virtually the only part of the country to escape Spain's current cold snap. more... 03.02.2012 - The crew of a yacht which caught fire shortly after leaving Puerto Colón were rescued safely thanks to the intervention of another boat in the area, which answered its distress call. more... Santa Cruz - 02.02.2012 - The first Queen of this year's Carnival was chosen last night in a much trimmed-down ceremony in Santa Cruz's Exhibition Centre. more... Arico - 02.02.2012 - Police in Arico are investigating the circumstances of the horrific death of a Cuban farm labourer who was crushed by a lorry as he worked early yesterday. more...    Banish the blues They tell us that this is one of the most depressing times of the year more...   | E-Zigarette Die E-Zigarette Classic ist das robuste Modell für den täglichen Gebrauch. www.elektrische-zigarette.eu Rent a car Tenerife We have been in the rent a car business since 1976 in Tenerife. Our experience - your advantage. www.hermanns-cars.com Electronic Cigarette The Electronic Cigarette SLIM is recommended for smokers with few consume, occasional smokers and to go. www.liquid-shop.eu Real Estate Tenerife We are a real estate company, constituted in the year 2002, and nevertheless our professional team possesses a long trajectory in the real estate sector in the north of Tenerife. www.optima-tenerife.es ic media group |
