Consulting for Change Management
     

Este sitio en español

(Article published in 2002)

Environmentalist & Rancher

Rick's Forest Preserve    Rick's Cattle Ranch

I would like to take this opportunity to share my views and activities in a few areas that some people might consider mutually exclusive. I have purposefully put forth on my home page that I am a Real Estate Agent, an Environmentalist and a Rancher--given that I perform work in all three. 

A basic question is how we interpret a "healthy environment" and our response is demonstrated by how we interact with the world around us. Each of us live in a particular environment and impact our surroundings, and the choices we make result in improvements or detriments to the overall environment. I certainly don't do everything I can to minimize my impact, but I make a concerted effort to promote healthy environmental decisions. 

Let me share some actions that I've taken and positions I've held during the past 20 years...

In 1985 I assisted an investor in the purchase of a coffee farm & cattle ranch in Costa Rica. The property was around 175 acres, with under 10 acres cultivated, around 100 in pasture and 65 acres forested; and I was hired as property manager. During my year as manager I expanded the area under cultivation and introduced new crops and livestock. The investor had expectations regarding his return on investment and I oversaw actions such as the thinning of the forest along an internal road, necessary for our transportation needs. 

A portion of pasture created from rainforest had been put back into reforestation, and trees were also being raised as a crop (tree farming). Management requires decisions regarding utilization of resources. This property was purchased with expectations of economic returns and I made decisions based on economics as well as environmental stewardship. 

I learned several lessons from this one year experience, but the following will drive home an important point. After about a year as manager it was time for me to move on and I left a very capable young man to take over for me. Within about a year after I left the investor decided to sell off this property--he figured it was time to pull his money out. The next owners bought the property for cattle ranching and promptly cut down the remaining forest (slash & burn) to maximize pastureland. 

The point I want to make has to do with "balance." We have a need for food, shelter, air, water, biological diversity--natural resources utilized both for our consumption and protected for the well-being of this planet. I consider myself an environmentalist because when decision making, I place a high priority on the environmental impact of my actions.

 I would like to offer more examples of "resource consumption" and "resource conservation," but if you'd like to "cut to the chase"--follow these links to my current Forest Preserve and Cattle Ranch.

Between 1987 and 2001 I was part owner and the manager of a ten acre "organic" farm, located about 45 minutes west of the capital city of Costa Rica, San Jose. Farms in Costa Rica until recently weren't "certified organic" and for some crops when we weren't able to supply sufficient organic fertilizers we resorted to chemical fertilizers. The three primary commercial activities on this farm were dairy production, citrus fruits, and raising pigs. 

On this property were also springs that provided water to the small  community below us. I was one of the first individuals to introduce concepts of "watershed management" to our community. We also were one of the first farms practicing composting, mulching, crop rotation, diversification, etc.  Our region of Puriscal was the textbook example of the detrimental impacts of slash & burn agriculture. 

During the practically 15 years of managing our farm, Finca Colibri, I had many exciting opportunities. I sold our produce and products at Farmers Markets, and practiced livestock management in what I consider to be very environmentally friendly ways (i.e., free range while protecting riparian corridors, etc.) . I worked as a development consultant promoting sustainable agriculture.

Then I combined these activities with other services... I worked as a tour guide, leading groups of the growing number of tourists coming to visit Costa Rica. Then I became a nationally recognized leader promoting sustainable tourism policies. For a while I was on the board of the Audubon Society of Costa Rica, and for a year served as the director. In 1991 I was a speaker at the World Congress on Ecotourism, and I was elected as the Latin American Representative of the National Audubon Society.

In 1987 I helped facilitate a "reality tour" for North Americans visiting Central America, and I served as an interpreter for Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Peter Gabriel and others during Amnesty International's Human Rights Tour. In 1988 I worked with the Institute for Central American Studies (ICAS) to set up study abroad programs for college students. In 1989 I was hired by WorldTeach at Harvard University to establish WorldTeach Costa Rica--a one-year volunteer teaching program. And in 1994 I linked ICAS and the YMCA to initiate experiential learning programs for high school students.

"So what?" you might ask... I have had the opportunity to share in the experiences of thousands of students, teachers, tourists, celebrities and policy-makers--facilitating their interaction with a new environment and prodding them to question their own lives. In one way or another I have led people to study sustainable development and question the environmental impact of their actions. 

Send mail to rickholland@igc.org with questions or comments about this web site.
Last modified: May 13, 2008