The Matthiesen Foundation has been involved with Joaquin Leguia and ANIA for around 10 years now funding the pilot schemes for The Children’s Forest in Amazonia and subsequent development, sponsoring nutrition and medical manuals etc. Such has been the success of this concept founded by Joaquin that it has rapidly expanded to alternative locations in Peru and elsewhere in Latin America, notably Brazil. It has also been taken up in Ireland, Japan and India.
The original concept centered around education, health and promoting an interest in the very young to save the rain forest. As the concept developed the scope increased to include conservation or the creation of green spaces, however small, wherever they were located, in short it became a universal ecological project and was renamed THE CHILDREN’S LANDS. The latest development was to bring schemes into an urban context.
In view of this expansion discussions with Joaquin revolved round an update of the original concept manual, now over 5 years old and only in Spanish. The Foundation has therefore sponsired a project with ANIA to update the instruction cartoon illustrated manuals to better relate to recent developments and to translate them into English and Portuguese in addition to the original Spanish. Once completed in late-2010 the multi-lingual manuals will be uploaded onto the web in PDF format and will henceforward be accessable to all.
Update April 2010. Interest in the concept is now being shown in Japan so that a Japanese pdf version may also be prepared.
Part one: How to start you childrens lands.
Part two: Implementing your childrens lands.
Part three: Making your childrens land sustainable (this is more for adults). In summary we are doing something much better and more complete. Our goal is to have all the products by the end of 2010.