• Educate the population regarding the use and conservation on natural resources.
  
  

It has been designed to function under an integrated focus together with the commercialization of chrysalides, and managed by different   organizations located on different ecological level, all around the country, which accounts for a great variety of butterfly species that can be produced and commercialized.

As of now, the groups included in this project are:

The size of the groups varies from four to fifteen members each. Education level among this women and men is mainly that of having completed elementary school (47.4%), followed by those who haven't finished elementary school (23.7%).

The communities where the butterfly farms are located offer few chances for employment of these women and men, being housekeeping (their own) and  agricultural labor, for the men, their main occupation. The scarce alternatives for paid employment cause, in some cases, migrations to other zones of the country, where women and men are hired in banana packaging plants.

The chrysalides marketing are done through Spirogyra Butterfly Garden in San Jose. Our butterfly garden is eight years old and in order to fulfill export commitments has adopted the strategy of supporting and commercializing the production of small organized or individual producers.

This project has generated important results for these people, which have been achieved through services obtained through the groups' own effort. Among these are the development of knowledge and skills, the increase in motivation and achievement capability, reinforcement of values and attitudes, and a higher self esteem and valuation within their family and communities.

Through their participation in this project, these women and men have created important spaces in which to talk and analyze their problems and needs and gather strength for their participation in community structures.

Regarding the participation of other family members in the butterfly farms, boys and girls help their mothers in their chores of collecting plants and butterflies. The men, on the other hand, have cooperated with women and men in the chores of cleaning the lots and the construction of the infrastructures. Occasionally, men bring plants and butterflies they have collected in the jungle to the women and men.

The project has caused that both the families and communities involved in the project and their families and communities in general to widen their view of their surroundings and to appreciate more fully the existing natural resources within their communities. Before, they thought that all the "worms"(larvae) were pests, and the host plants were weeds, unaware to their potential usefulness.

This people observation capability for nature has sharpened to a degree of having almost become "practical" scientists. Therefore being able to identify every stage of the reproductive cycle of the species they are involved with as well as other "new" species found in the wilderness when they go on exploration to avoid inbreeding.

The intended goal is to provide the means to a minority (rural women and men) to increase their socio-economic level through the use of renewable natural resources, thus avoiding the need for environmentally harmful practices such as migrations, selling the wood on their lands, agrochemical oriented agriculture, and so forth. This empowers them to decide for themselves, creates a wider awareness of nature, and set the standards for future generations to try and live in harmony with nature.

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