Fifty Volunteers, Six Nations, One Thousand Trees

The week opened with a live episode of “Voices from the Field,” recorded at The Panama Project’s headquarters at Tropical Arts Resort, where host Natalia Naranjo spoke with youth leader Sophia D’Angelo and Panama Project founder Steve Bender about the work ahead. On Thursday, the team boated from Tropical Arts Resort to Dolphin Bay on Isla San Cristóbal, where more than 50 Rotarians and volunteers from the U.S., Costa Rica, Australia, Mexico, Panama and Malaysia planted over 1,000 trees representing 50+ native species before lunch, a day’s work toward the Trammell S. Crow Rare Tree Forest, one of Central America’s most ambitious rare-tree conservation efforts.

The planting adds to a two-acre reforestation site at Dolphin Bay, developed with the Bocas Rainforest Reforestation Initiative (BRRI). It’s the second forest in a global series honoring Dallas philanthropist and EarthX founder Trammell S. Crow, following the EarthX Forest in Rovaniemi, Finland.

“A day like this doesn’t happen by accident. It takes months of coordination with MiAmbiente, BRRI and our partners on the ground to prep the area, line up the trees, tools and the logistics for fifty volunteers from six countries,” said Steve Bender, founder of The Panama Project and Rotary Reefs, and president of the Rotary Club of Newport Beach.

Local Partners

MiAmbiente, ITEC, BRRI, Green Acres and Steve Bender supplied trees and staff, working alongside BRRI, founded by Brian and Amy Wilcox of Dolphin Bay Hideaway with Dr. Peter Lahanas and Leonor Ceballos Meraz of ITEC, and volunteers from the Bocas del Toro Rotary Club, longtime partners in restoring habitat for the endangered Great Green Macaw.

Lunch, Health Outreach, and Reefs

Volunteers broke for lunch at the No Name Bar, trading stories of poison dart frogs, birds and sloth sightings. In the afternoon, the group applied fluoride varnish and distributed toothbrushes and oral-health education from the Oral Hygiene Initiative to local children, outreach typically run with Ayuda International and Floating Doctors for island communities without road access.

The delegation also visited the Rotary Reefs coral restoration site, snorkeling out to see structures rebuilding fish habitat lost to warming seas and disease.

“The reefs off Bocas del Toro tell the same story as the forest does on land: degraded habitat can come back if people commit to restoring it,” said Natalia Naranjo, who leads Rotary Reefs. “Every structure we place gives coral colonies a foothold, and every season we’re seeing more fish, more color and more life.”

The Bigger Picture

The forest, reef restoration and health outreach are all threads of The Panama Project, the flagship initiative of the 7 Seas Initiative, built around Rotary International’s areas of focus and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

“Getting to plant a thousand trees in the morning and helping children in the afternoon, honestly, it was the most rewarding and just plain fun day I’ve had,” said Sophia D’Angelo, youth leader and co-chair of Rotary Reefs. “It shows younger people we don’t have to wait until we’re adults to lead on something like this.”

For volunteers from Newport Beach, San Diego, Dallas, Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, Australia, Panama and Malaysia, August 6th leaves behind 1,000 new trees, a healthier reef, and over 50 brighter smiles in Dolphin Bay.

About The Panama Project & The Tree Projects

The Panama Project, based in Bocas del Toro, is the flagship initiative of the 7 Seas Initiative, uniting reforestation, coral reef restoration, clean water and health outreach under one community-driven model. The Trammell S. Crow Rare Tree Forest is established by The Tree Projects. Learn more at thepanamaproject.org and thetreeprojects.org.

About VolunteerTourism.org

This event is also part of VolunteerTourism.org, which connects travelers with community-partnered conservation and humanitarian projects around the world, starting with The Panama Project as its flagship destination. The network now spans 25+ partner organizations working across reef restoration, reforestation, clean water and community health. Learn more at volunteertourism.org.