TURNING WASTE INTO OPPORTUNITY AT FINCA HAMBURGO CHIAPAS, MEXICO

TURNING WASTE INTO OPPORTUNITY

FINCA HAMBURGO, CHIAPAS, MEXICO

Re-Creativa Sustentable Finca Hamburgo

At Re-Creativa, we are more than just a recycling project—we are a community of six women from Finca Hamburgo, deeply committed to turning waste into opportunity. What started as a simple idea has grown into a powerful initiative where we transform plastic waste into beautiful, functional products. Not only are we making a positive impact on the environment, but we are also creating economic opportunities for ourselves and other women in rural communities, right here in the heart of Chiapas, Mexico.

6 deeply committed women turning waste into opportunity in Chiapas, Mexico

Our Journey to Sustainability

Living in the lush mountains of Chiapas, surrounded by breathtaking natural beauty, we’ve seen firsthand the challenges posed by plastic waste. There is little infrastructure here for waste management, and much of the plastic ends up in rivers or lands in open dumps, damaging our environment. We knew something had to change.

That’s when we teamed up with In Mocean and Finca Hamburgo, our home. Finca Hamburgo is a historic coffee farm in the heart of Chiapas, and it became the perfect foundation for us to build something meaningful. Together, we began the journey to create a space where we could recycle plastic waste and turn it into useful, sell'able products—helping the planet and creating opportunities for our community.

Education is a imperative component of addressing the plastic pollution.

Transforming Plastic into Creativity

It all started with a workshop. Nike, a passionate sailor and founder of In Mocean, reached out to us and offered to lead an introductory workshop at Finca Hamburgo. We invited women and children from the community to join, and together we learned how to make simple drafts from shredded plastic. Over two days, the idea of Re-Creativa started to take shape. We realized we could turn plastic waste into something more—something creative, useful, and impactful.

From that moment on, we knew we had to build something lasting: a community-led recycling workspace where we could create, learn, and contribute to a cleaner, greener future.

Earrings are just one of the items re-created from plastic waste

Setting Up Our Workspace

With support from In Mocean, the REESE Gruppe, and generous donors, we received the equipment we needed—machines like a shredder and an extruder. Just two weeks after our first workshop, Nike and Maria (co-founder of In Mocean) returned to Finca Hamburgo, and we got to work. We learned how to operate the machines, sort plastics, and use our creativity to make products that would not only help the environment but also generate income.

Our first creations were colorful earrings made from shredded plastic. We quickly began to experiment, crafting bowls and beams using the extruder. But it wasn’t just about making things—it was about learning how to run our new workspace as a small business. We discussed how to generate income, market our products, and sustain this new venture for the long term.

The machine that is used to shred the collected, washed, and sorted plastic.

Early Successes and Growing Together

As we took ownership of Re-Creativa, we named our workspace and even designed our logo. We set up an Instagram account to showcase our creations, and soon, the sales started rolling in. The money we earned helped support our families and fueled our passion for the project. With each new product, we saw our skills grow, and we began working on a new goal: our first prototype for a chair made from recycled beams.

What makes Re-Creativa so special is the sense of community we’ve built together. We are no longer just recycling plastic—we are creating something bigger than ourselves. The bond we share as we work, learn, and grow together is the heart of this project. We’ve even begun hosting workshops in schools and cultural centers in Tapachula, sharing our journey and encouraging others to join the movement.

Re-creativa is creating community on many levels to take waste, beautify their immediate environment, and create a new local economic opportunity.

A Beacon of Sustainable Change

For us, Re-Creativa is more than just a workspace—it’s a beacon of hope. It shows that even small, simple actions can lead to big changes. By turning waste into valuable products, we’re not only helping the environment, but we’re also creating opportunities, building a sense of community, and inspiring others to act.

As we continue to grow, we are more determined than ever to transform waste into creativity, opportunity, and empowerment. We know that this is just the beginning, and we’re excited to see where this journey takes us.

Join Us for a Recycling Workshop and Visit Finca Hamburgo

We’d love for you to come and visit us at Finca Hamburgo. Experience the beauty of our home and see firsthand the work we’re doing at Re-Creativa. Join us for a hands-on recycling workshop, where you’ll learn how we turn plastic waste into creative, functional products. It’s a chance to connect with our community, see the impact of our work, and be part of the positive change we’re building together.

From la Marina in Tapachula Chiapas it’s a 2 hour drive to Finca Hamburgo. For more information about the hotel, restaurant and spa, please contact Ulises: +52 962 153 2916.
Any information about coffee or the recycling workshop, I am happy to help.
Let me know of you need any more information.
Hear from you soon.
Lisa

Minamitorishima Island, Japan

Minamitorishima Island, Japan

roughly translates to "Southern Bird Island"

Minamitorishima is located about 1,848 kilometers (1,149 miles) southeast of Tokyo, making it one of Japan's most distant territories.
Minamitorishima, also known as Minami Torishima or Marcus Island, is a remote, uninhabited raised coral atoll in the Pacific Ocean.  It is part of the Ogasawara Islands chain, which belongs to Japan.  This small (less than 1 square mile) low lying island (less than 400 ft above sea level) was once mined heavily for guano, serves as a strategic location for airspace and maritime surveillance and is now the site of major sub sea floor rare-earth metal mining research and possibilities.  Rare-earth metals are crucial in the making of high-tech products such as electric vehicles and batteries, and most of the world has relied on China for almost all of its needs.  After China restricted exports of strategic rare-earth oxides (REO's) in 2009 Japan began to explore its sea floor for deposits.   Among the rare metals found around Minamitorishima Island are cobalt and nickel — both essential for lithium-ion batteries.
Manganese nodules found in the seabed around Minamitorishima
Minamitorishima Island samples held by scientists from the University of Tokyo
Minamitorishima is considered Japan’s easternmost territory and plays a role in Japan's control over its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the Pacific Ocean.  The island is off limits to civilians except for Japan Meteorological Agency staff, although reporters, documentary makers, and scientific researchers can sometimes get an entry permit. No commercial boat tours or flights visit the island, and civilians are currently not allowed access to Minamitorishima for tours or sightseeing, due to its use by the JSDF as an observation station.
The Research operation investigating the existence, location, and concentration of rare-earth metals has been focusing their efforts to collect samples from the sub-sea floor from around Minamitorishima island because this atoll makes a great base of operations.  In 2013 a deep sea research vessel obtained seven deep sea mud core samples some 5000m below the sea level that revealed extremely concentrated REO in a mud layer 2-4m beneath the seabed around the island. 
Researchers think that the deposits found are the result of hot plumes from hydrothermal vents that over hundreds of thousands of years have pulled materials out of the seawater and deposited them into the muddy seabed.
An effort began in 2018 to create detailed maps of rare-earth elements distribution.   Researchers have found 16 million tons of REO mineralized sediments within the studied area which some say is equivalent to 75-100 years worth of rare-earth materials underneath Japanese waters — enough to supply to the world on a "semi-infinite basis," according to a study published in Nature Publishing Group's Scientific Reports.  That supply term depends on the demand of course and it remains to be seen what and how human demands for products that utilize these REO's will change in time...especially if there are more suppliers than China.
Japanese Research Vessel Kaityo Maru 2 is supporting the acoustic mapping operation around Minamitorishima Island
The mapping and sampling process requires a wide range of specialists and organizations, cutting edge technology and equipment, and time.  There are marine geologists using new high resolution acoustic profiling technology that creates a narrow acoustic beam that transmits information about the soft seafloor 6000m to 11,000m deep.  The beam is then able to penetrate 200m into the sub-seafloor allowing researchers for the first time to gather sub-seafloor data.  Concurrently, researchers have taken hundreds of deep sea core samples which is very slow and difficult work as well.  One sample taken 5000m deep can take an entire day.  Samples are sent to laboratories in Tokyo for analysis.  Together they are building an understanding of the geologic history of the area like never before and hope that they will be able to discover where the soft sediment with the material from the ocean vents has settled.
Deep sea piston coring device.
Piston with lowers the core sampler. 700 samples have been taken in three years.
In addition to the islands particular geology, Minamitorishima is known to have a unique ecosystem, and though 'uninhabited' by humans, it provides a habitat for various bird species, hence the name, "Southern bird Island". Its isolation and distance from the mainland has allowed it to remain relatively undisturbed by human activity, which is important for preserving its natural environment.  The island is also a significant site for marine life, with surrounding waters providing a rich habitat for marine species. With this in mind, while the researchers have made many findings about the geology of the surrounding seafloor, their efforts are colossal and not without impact.  The drivers believe that results could be worth the effort.  In the long term and in the short term one cannot forget to ask, What are the risks?  Will the risks be outweighed by the rewards?  What are the impacts of this work on the surrounding environment, the local, pelagic, and migratory animals.  Could the repeated core sampling affect the plate tectonics?  Could the acoustic beams disrupt other ocean acoustics?  Have they already?  What could be affected that is not being considered or seen at this time?
As all these questions begin to bubble up it is clear is that Minamitorishima’s isolation, strategic role, and environmental uniqueness make it an intriguing part of Japan’s territorial holdings in the Pacific.  Japan is being strategic and hopefully considering so much more than the potential political and economic value of the extracted minerals for the human species.
It was the possibility of darkness that made the day seem so bright. -Stephen King

By Maurisa Descheemaeker on SV WHIRLWIND

 

Sources: https://www.nature.com/articles/d42473-020-00525-x

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2024/06/22/japan/science-health/tokyo-island-rare-metals-find/

https://www.t-borderislands.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en/minamitorishima/


MANTA RAYS MAJESTIC & MYSTERIOUS

MANTA RAYS : Majestic and Mysterious

Each Manta ray can be identified by their unique markings on their underside.  Photo Credit: SV WANDERLUST

Manta Rays are among the most majestic gentle giants in tropical and sub tropical oceans of the world.  Seeing them swim under water is a magical sight to behold; with their mouths wide open, manta rays silently move through the water in a slow, effortless, gliding motion, feeding on the smallest of living creatures, plankton, that drift in the ocean currents.   Like many species of sharks, mantas are in constant motion to keep water flowing over their gills to breathe.  Additionally, mantas are cartilaginous fish meaning their skeleton is made of cartilage like our ears and noses.

There are two species of Manta Rays: the Reef Manta (Mobula alfredi) and the Oceanic Manta (Mobula birostris).  No matter the species of manta, With their wings outstretched they dwarf all but large sharks or whales.  The reef mantas wings span up to 5 meters while the oceanic mantas wings span up to 7 meters and can weigh up to 2 tons.  Manta Rays have the largest brain to body ratio of all living fish and are known to display high levels of intelligence, have long-term memory, and are able to map their environment using sights and smells.  The markings on their underside are their unique 'fingerprint'.  Much like the marking on the underside of a humpbacks tail, the star-like pattern of whale sharks, and the whisker spots of lions, there are no two exactly alike and these creatures can be identified by their markings that make them unique.

Manta in the pass to Tikihau Atoll, French Polynesia. Photo Credit: Planet Ocean

As seen in this photo above there is a mutualism, or mutually beneficial relationship, between mantas and various small hitchhiker fish like remoras.  The Remora clings onto the Manta Ray for protection, transportation and scraps from the Manta Rays meals. The Remora benefits the Manta Ray by cleaning it’s skin of bacteria and parasites keeping Mantas healthy.  Manta Rays can also be found at 'Cleaning Stations' (or healthy coral patches) sometimes circling close by for up to an hour before moving in for a cleaning and then staying on for hours getting cleaned.  In this case the mantas have a symbiotic relationship with cleaner fish (like the cleaner wrasse fish and the scarlet cleaner shrimp). These small fish and crustaceans swim around the larger animals and inside their mouths to eat the parasites, bacteria, and dead skin cells from their bodies.  One animal is getting fed while the other is getting cleaned.  It's a win-win!  Manta Rays will often return to cleaning stations they 'know'.

Manta rays live up to 50 years.  The female manta becomes sexually mature a bit later than the male: round 8-10 years of age.  Manta rays are ovoviviparous meaning that after fertilization the offspring grows inside an egg (like a bird...but WAIT...there's more)...which the female manta carries inside of her during the pregnancy and give birth to a live fully independent manta ray (live birth like a mammal?!).  Mantas give birth to 1-2 manta every 2-5 years.  Many details are still a mystery as no one has ever documented seeing a live birth in the wild.

The manta ray can be seen in Polynesian art and design

Perhaps because of their size, their grace, their omnipresence in the oceans Manta Rays, and many other characteristics, manta rays have found their way into the art and mythology of many cultures around the world.  In Polynesian mythology, for instance, the manta ray is believed to be the guardian of the ocean and a symbol of knowledge and wisdom.  In ancient Greek mythology, they were believed to be messengers of the sea god, Poseidon.   In ancient Hindu mythology, manta rays are believed to be the manifestation of Lord Vishnu, the creator of the universe. In Japan, manta rays are often associated with the god of the sea, believed to protect sailors and fishermen from danger and provide them good fortune.  Interestingly, they are universally seen as protectors and not aggressors, creators not destroyers.

Sadly, as much as manta rays are widely admired to revered their existence is threatened in various ways.  Being pelagic, they cross 'borders' constantly and live in a warming ocean that is thereby struggling with habitat loss and teaming with industrialized fishing techniques that do not take care to avoid them (mantas are often 'bycatch' and can die due to suffocation as a result of entanglement.).  In some places mantas are specifically sought out for food and bait (for instance in the Sea of Cortez, Mexico) and in the western south Pacific mantas are harvested for their gill plates that are used in Asian Medicine.   It is worth noting that in Indonesia, Peru, and the Philippines there now national laws in place to protect manta rays.

Still, in order to protect animals, we need to understand them.  Efforts are being made to understand manta distribution, mating, and ecology better to help them.  However, Scientific efforts to understand Mantas formally began rather recently around 2008.

Satellite telemetry (tagging) has been used on dozens of marine species. This map highlights the diversity of species tagged in just one study; the Tagging of Pelagic Predators (TOPP) programme. Figure from Block et al., 2011.

According to Mantatrust.org  :

Manta rays often undertake seasonal migrations, travelling tens, hundreds, and sometimes thousands of kilometers. This means that their habitat can encompass large areas, sometimes crossing national boundaries, where conservation management is often more challenging. Therefore, to effectively protect these animals, we must first understand what habitats they are using, when they are there, and what they are doing within it. 

....It is often a sad fact of human nature that the more endangered a wild animal becomes, the greater our desire to possess or consume it. Diminishing stocks drive a lucrative trade (often illegal) to hunt down, trade in, and consume the dwindling populations of these endangered species.

Interestingly, again there is still so much mystery around mantas that citizen scientists are helping with these efforts.  People can communicate directly with the scientists at Manta Trust to help supply information (pictures) to create a 'mantabase' about specific manta individuals to share where they are and begin to help map their health, habitats, and seasonal routes.

If you are a mariner, look out for this incredible species of fish.  Maybe you can appreciate their majesty while unlocking some of their mystery.


AMAZING ANIMALS: HERMIT CRABS

AMAZING ANIMALS: HERMIT CRABS

By Josea Descheemaeker age 11

Hermit crabs combing the beach in French Polynesia

You probably see these creatures on every beach you go to and every time you go snorkeling.  Hermit  crabs can live in the water and on land due to the fact that they breath through gills.

Hermit crabs names are very deceiving for several reasons:

  1. As opposed to being hermits that prefer to always be alone, hermit crabs are vary social with other hermit crabs.  Hermit crabs live and walk easily among their kind, over and under their kind, eating shell to shell in groups sometimes.
  2. They are more shy than hermit like.  They are quick to hide in their shell when as little as a shadow passes over them.
  3. Hermit crabs are more closely related to spiders and scorpions than crabs,

The reason people put Hermit in their name is because they carry their homes

everywhere they go . Hermit crabs are vary picky about what shells they live in and they switch shells when they grow too big for the one they are living in.  Sadly, now some Hermit crabs use plastic bottle caps and other Plastic  things as homes.

This hermit crab is using a plastic bottle cap as a 'shell'

Many Hermit crabs love to decorate their shells.  Hermit crabs can lift things 10 times their weight . Despite a hermit crab's size they Typically live up to 30 years in the wild and some live  up to  60 years. There are about 500 Species of hermit crabs all over the world And with a lot of colors blues reds whites And oranges And sometimes all of those colors on one hermit crab.  Some colors can be very bright.

Hermit crabs have many predators too such as big crabs, birds, and fish that keep the hermit crab population down.  Hermit cards eat pretty much anything they can fined and from my experience they love coconut.

These Hermit crabs are in Mexico eating side by side until the coconut meat was completely gone.

Believe it or not hermit crabs and coconut crabs are closely related.  While hermit crabs live in shells their entire life, coconut crabs only live in shells when they are young.

My Experience

Hermit crabs are very shy animals.  When you get to close to them they retreat into their shells.  When I put a hermit crab on my hand most will be very eager to run off and get away from me.  It is a rare hermit crabs, typically the bigger ones, that will try to pinch me.  Do not be deceived by their small size, they have very large claws and it hurts a lot when they pinch you.  If you are hiking off the beach and when you’re still close to the beach, you can sometimes find hermit crabs clinging to the tree.  If you’re taking a shell from the beach look very closely and make sure there’s not a hermit crab in it.  At 1st glance some shells look like they don’t have any hermit crabs in them but the small hermit crab sometimes get in  shells way too big for them and it’s very hard to see them so look very closely.  This has happened to me sometimes and I have accidentally brought a  hermit crab in their shells back to the boat. If there's a shy hermit crab that you want out of the shell you can cup it in your hands and breathe onto them. This typically coaxes them out because of the warmth of your breath but there are some that are just too scared and they won't come out.

A great way to find hermit crabs is to get down close to the sand at the beach and just start looking. This is something my family and I do a lot.  We definitely found hermit crabs here in Costa Rica.

SY WHIRLWIND 🇺🇸 Maurisa, Mike, Russell & Josea – Alajuela 48’

WHIRLWINDWHIRLWINDWHIRLWINDWHIRLWIND


BOCAS DEL TORO BEACH CLEAN UP

BOCAS DEL TORO BEACH CLEAN UP

Beach clean up crew in Bocas del Torro, Panama
Stewardship in action: So much plastic we find on the beaches we visit is floating in from somewhere else. Local people appreciate all the help we can give to keep their beaches clean.

Report from Maison de Sante:

We had a nice group of Posse boats and local residents here in Bocas Del Toro, Panama who came out this morning for clean up on Red Frog beach. Many pounds of plastic garbage was collected 😊. The strangest items collected included a bicycle mud flap, a scuba purge valve, and a diaper🤢. Some people had to leave early so not everyone is pictured. Stay tuned for a future date where we can ALL participate in beach clean up wherever you are located!

SY BISOU 🇦🇺 Robin and Tad - Fountaine Pajot 44′ & SY MAISON DE SANTÉ 🇺🇸 Nicole & Keenan -  Cal 46'

THANK YOU FOR BEING STEWARDS OF OUR ENVIRONMENT!


PLASTIC

Recent Article from Pulitzer Center Ocean Reporting Network Reveals Harsh Realities Plastic

Traveling the world by the ocean, plastic waste cannot be overlooked as a global problem.  It is in the end of it's 'use' when the global problem plastic pollution becomes most obvious.  As ocean voyagers we see Plastic bottles, wrappers, lines, containers, and shoes filling current lines, passing through an anchorage or an estuary with the tide, littering the high tide line from the beach into the trees, and burning in thick black smoke from trash fires all over the world.  It is most contemptible and disastrously true that many stunning beaches are spoiled by plastic waste that comes from near and far.   Ideally, all plastic is or could be recycled and neither the air quality or the environment are harmed in the process.  However, in reality less than 10% of plastic produced is recycled worldwide and plastic waste is becoming a greater and greater threat to human health and the environment.  We all need to know more in order to do better by ourselves, the environment and future generations.

"Humans have produced more than 11 billion metric tons of virgin plastic since 1950, when plastic first came into widespread use, according to Roland Geyer, lead author of one of the first scientific studies quantifying the global plastic habit. According to his research, only 2 billion metric tons are still in use today, meaning the rest—some 8.7 billion tons—is waste. According to the U.N. Environment Programme, the world produces 430 million metric tons of plastic annually, two-thirds of which are short-lived products destined for disposal."

Quote from: Inside Fiji’s Fiery Battle Against Plastics By Aryn Baker/Lautoka, Fiji

Thankfully, there are initiatives all over the world working to understand and address this global problem.  A recent article quoted above from the Pulitzer Center Ocean Reporting Network tracks the complicated and convoluted plastic problem that the island nation of Fiji is facing.  Fiji produces plastic (Fiji Water is their biggest tax payer and employer), distributes plastic worldwide, uses plastic, receives plastic by way of ocean currents in excess of national use by 72%, dumps, buries, and burns plastic.  Plastic at the end of it's use is Fiji's most problematic pollutant.

Map by Lon Tweeten and Aryn Baker for TIME

Fiji is a small island nation of 332 islands; they maintain one sanitary landfill and two municipal dumps.  While these waste facilities make an effort to manage their own national waste they are unable to manage the added plastic pollution in the ocean landing on their shores.  While interviewing a local woman that sorts and cleans plastic bottles for cash returns, the reports follows her as she process all 'other' plastic.

So, where does excess plastic waste go when it cannot be properly recycled or disposed of? 

  1. In Fiji, there is a limited amount of plastic bottles that are bought back by Coca Cola and Fiji Water and many Fijians are a part of this 'economy'.  This 'economy' involves, collecting, sorting, washing, bagging, weighing and delivering select Coca-Cola and/or Fiji bottles.
  2. 'Other' plastic waste is either burned,
  3. buried, or
  4. dumped into the environment.

While the report focuses on Fiji, the story of people, burdened by heaps of plastic, burning, burying, or dumping excess plastic is replicated dozens of times daily in communities around the world, and across the Fijian archipelago, creating a toxic burden on human and environmental health that is only starting to be quantified.  The article goes on to tease apart the impact of these different methods on the environment and human health while highlighting local efforts in Fiji to address plastic pollution on a local and global level.

It is a wake up call.  Plastic pollution is a detriment to our environment and human health.  The toxic effects are being found in human blood to breastmilk and scientists are beginning to study the linkage to rising cancers and developmental delays and diseases.

To read more about the problem and possible global solutions, click this link:

https://time.com/6991350/plastic-microplastics-fiji-water-recycling/

Further reading that may be of interest to boat owners comes from a British study revealing "Disturbing levels" of Fiberglass in Oysters and Mussels.  The ocean knows no borders, these are global issues:

https://boattest.com/article/british-study-reveals-disturbing-level-fiberglass-oysters-and-mussels