Projects We Support
Mas Mariposas supports the following projects through La Mariposa in Nicaragua. Click into any of the sections to learn more. You can also learn more at the Mariposa School Website.
Children Projects
Chispa de Vida is a free program for differently abled people in the community of La Conception, Nicaragua. It strives to improve the quality of life for these individuals and their families.
In 2019 we decided to reorganise the children’s projects in order to offer a more integrated approach to ensure that, whatever their abilities, all children in our projects have access to the same resources.
The Panama Project provides English classes to school children in the Panama Barrio in order to increase future economic opportunities for youth growing up in a very poor, disadvantaged area.
Environmental & Garden
As climate change and environmental breakdown continue to accelerate across the globe, it is clear that Nicaragua is particularly vulnerable to a number of impacts.
We concentrate reforesting both in our nature reserve and along the ridge to form a windbreak for the houses. Thousands of trees have been planted in 3 years and we are always careful to ensure they are native trees which will withstand the unusual conditions (the passing overhead of volcanic fumes.)
To respond as best we can to climate change, we have formed a movement called Ambientalistas Mariposa en Accion (Mariposa Environmentalists in Action).
A wide variety of plants, trees and flowers are maintained at every Mariposa site. In the fertile soil of La Reserva, we cultivate vegetables, (herbs, leafy greens, root vegetables….) fruits, (oranges, mandarins, coconuts…) and medicinal plants (aloe, oregano, anise…)
Animal Rescue & Sanctuary
The animal project started because Paulette likes to have a dog around and Guillermina likes to horse ride… we now care for literally hundreds of animals, some within La Mariposa, some released into the wild of our 140 acre Cañada Honda nature reserve, and some we support in the homes of local people who have adopted a dog or cat.
We spend approximately $1000 per month on animal food, including bananas and seeds for wild birds and we also have excellent veterinary support. In spite of all of our efforts we have learnt that we cannot save them all. For example, we have had puppies with distemper, horses so weak from overwork that they do not live long, and dogs that have simply run away.
Our rescued horses now live in a spacious stable with plenty of acres to graze in the beautiful Cañada Honda reserve.
We have about 60 dogs living in one or other of our sites and we feed and pay for vet services for about 20 who live in excellent homes, usually with one of our workers.
We rescue iguannas, monkeys, parrots, and other native species, and when possible, release them into our Nature Reserve, Canada Honda.
Community Projects
La Mariposa is very active in the local community. Besides being one of the largest employers in the area, La Mariposa seeks to meet physical needs of some of the must vulnerable in the community.
We’ve focused on roof and latrine repair for some of the most vulnerable in our local communities.
We aid in the distribution of water during the dry seaons to some of the poorest communities.
During the 2020 COVID-19 crisis, we are helping deliver food relief to some of the most vulnerable families in our communities.