Boruca Christmas 2023

Give the gift of Christmas to the children of the Boruca Indigenous Community in Costa Rica

Thanks to just 20 kind people last year, we managed to send over £500 to support a Christmas tradition that means the world to the Boruca Indigenous Community, and so we’re doing it all again!

Christmas is just around the corner and we know that things are tight for us in the UK again this year. However, for some very special people in the village of Boruca in Costa Rica, most families cannot even afford to do a Christmas dinner or buy a single gift for their kids this year. In fact, during COVID, lots of local families skipped Christmas in every sense other than attending socially-distanced church services. 

We are therefore fundraising to help the lovely Adriana to host a special community Christmas party during which she will provide a home-cooked meal and give a gift to every single child in the village. We would be so grateful to anyone that can spare a fiver or the cost of a festive coffee to help us to help Adriana to do this.

The Indigenous Community of Boruca is nestled into the Talamanca Mountain Range in Costa Rica. We know that sounds far away, but this village is at the core of our production work here at Native to Earth. This community is the last non-displaced indigenous group in Central America and their methods of conservation are trailblazing; our team is making a documentary about this place and these people and their centuries old harmony with nature.

Nowadays, the Borucans rely on tourism for their income, hosting tourists in the village and selling their beautiful artwork all over the world. During the pandemic, they were physically roped off and lost almost all of their livelihoods for the same duration we couldn't live as normal. Most families ended up trading food they grew with other families just to feed themselves. As you can imagine, despite tourism kicking off again, they are still struggling and there isn't much to spare at the moment.

The lovely lady with glasses in these photos is Adriana. She runs multiple community projects, keeping the history of her ancestors alive in one, and bringing Christmas tradition and joy to young people in another. She is the hostess for the community Christmas party and she ends up bringing Christmas to families that would otherwise treat the day as if it were any other. These photos are from last year’s event, thanks to all of the kind donors!

Thank you for anything you can spare... We will update you all on the impact of your donations. It will be clear in the photos of the children. Adriana also thanks you and will forever label you as the Godparents of the Borucan children!

Feliz Navidad