As a preparatory activity for the celebration of International Women's Day and with the funds that we received through the URI WIN Women's Circle, we bought 40 trees that are symbols for our community members.
On March 8th 2019 we made a first planting of them in our sacred site Chacras del Universo, in Córdoba-Argentina. On the recommendation of our Elders, the rest of the trees will be planted between the months of April and May, in the two most sacred places for us, women descendants from the COMECHINGON INDIGENOUS PEOPLE: Chacras del Universo and Camping El Peregrino.
Click the yellow arrows to scroll through the photos in the slideshow below.
In our community, we are very grateful for this URI contribution since it allowed us to fulfill a beautiful dream: To purchase specimens of White Carob, this autochthonous species constitutes a real forest wealth. It is therefore necessary to rationalize the use and also carry out reforestation plans of the native forest and transform them into permanent producers of benefits for future generations. The pods of the Carob Tree are an important source of food for the native peoples, because from them we obtain a fruit (a pod) and the carob flour is made, as a replacement for cocoa or chocolate; also the Patay (our carob bread) is very sweet. This wonderful natural food which is used since millenniums ago, not only serve for making foods but for traditional drinks that the natives use in their ritual ceremonies.
In this first phase of the project, 40 specimens of white carob were purchased and ten of them were prepared and planted by four women from the community: Eve, Micaela, Graciela and me (Yanina) helped by girls and young people of the community which also supported us during the journey and paying the fees necessaries to move the specimens from where they were acquired to the place where they were going to be planted, it is a distance of 110 km.
The elderly advised us to wait until the month of May for planting the rest of 30 carob trees, it will be a better time to do planting and an opportunity to invite girls and women from the community to a large Gratitude Ceremony when we are going to strength the link with the ancestral teachings and traditions, the nature, to teach the use of natural medicine and reinforce their commitment to care these trees that could bring benefits to the entire planet. For this event, a remainder of the money was saved and the compromise of the community stays with us.
With this project, CC Yacu Yura is honoring our Mother Earth and our ancestors. We thank URI and all the members of the community for the contribution they have given us.
