Marine Life

El Salvador Sea Turtles

So the bio major in me came alive when I stated sorting through some more information about El Salvador.  Especially looking at the oceans and the marine life on the coast.
Looking at the map, El Salvador's coastline sits on the Pacific Ocean with four species of sea turtles, with hawksbills, olive ridleys, leatherbacks, and greens nesting on its beaches or foraging in its waters. Of particular importance is Jiquilisco Bay, a nesting area for the critically endangered hawksbill, one of only two major beaches in the entire Eastern Pacific. The other is in Nicaragua.

El Salvador Sea Turtle Species

Hawksbill: El Salvador is an important area for the critically endangered Eastern Pacific hawksbill. They nest here between the months of May and October.
 

Hawksbill turtles are named after their narrow pointed beak.  Their highly colored and patterned shell is the sole source of commercial 'tortoiseshell".  They are usually less than 1m in length, weigh 40-60kg, and are less widely distributed than some other species.  Their numbers have declinde by over 80% durning the last century, with the number of nesting females estimated at 8,000.  The species is classified as Critically Endangered.

 

 

Olive Ridley: This species is the most abundant in El Salvador, nesting widely year round on El Salvador's beaches. The peak nesting season for olive ridleys is July-December.

 

 

Olive ridley turtles look very similar to Kemp's ridley turtles, but have a deeper body and slightly up-turned shell edges. They are also slightly heavier, reaching 45kg. Although the species is widely distributed, the number of important breeding sites is very low. The species has yet to recover from centuries of over-exploitation, with the number of nesting females estimated at 800,000. The species is classified as Endangered.

 

 

Green: This country is an important foraging area for green sea turtles. They also nest in small numbers here on a handful of beaches between June and December.

 

 

Green turtles are named after the greenish colour of their cartilage and fat. They grow up to 1.5m long and can reach 200kg. Widely distributed in tropical and subtropical waters, the number of nesting females is estimated at 203,000. The species is classified as Endangered, with the Mediterranean population classified as Critically Endangered.

 

Leatherback: This species nests in small numbers on a handful of beaches between the months of October and January.

 

Leatherback turtles are named after their shell, which is leathery rather than hard like other turtles. They are the largest marine turtle species, typically reaching up to 180cm in length and weighing 500kg, and also one of the most migratory, making both trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific crossings. Widely distributed in tropical and temperate waters, their numbers have declined precipitously in most parts of the world in the last century. The number of nesting females is currently estimated at 34,000 and the species is classified as Critically Endangered.
 

 

 

(http://www.seeturtles.org/2845/el-salvador-sea-turtles.html)

(http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/marine_turtles/)

 

Habitat for Humanity in El Salvador

About Habitat For Humanity

Habitat's mission: Habitat for Humanity believes that every man, woman and child should have a decent, safe and affordable place to live. We build and repair houses all over the world using volunteer labor and donations. Our partner families purchase these houses through no-profit, no-interest mortgage loans or innovative financing methods.

Habitat is a nonprofit, ecumencial Christian ministry that builds with people in need regardless of race or religion.

Habitat has more than 1,500 local affiliates in the United States, and more than 70 national organizations around the world.  Together, Habitat has helped to build or repair over 600,000 houses, and serve over 3 million people worldwide!

There are nearly 2 billion people around the world who live in slum housing and more than 100 million are homeless. Habitat helps by building or renovating simple, decent houses in partnership with those in need.

Families left homeless by natural disasters, war and civil unrest often face dire housing situations as they struggle to rebuild their lives. We provide shelter and housing assistance to help these families recover.

(http://www.habitat.org/how/about_us.aspx)

Habitat for Humanity in El Salvador

Habitat for Humanity El Salvador built its first 29 houses in 1992, in the department of Santa Ana. Since then, much program renovation and organizational growth have taken place.
This year, 996 families have been served in El Salvador alone.

After being struck by recent natural disasters, the housing need increased rapidly in El Salvador, both in urban and rural areas. Of the total number of houses affected, 60 percent corresponded to homes with an income of up to two minimum wages, and the remaining 40 percent are households with incomes greater than two minimum wages.

El Salvador is still in the process of rebuilding. According to data provided by the Vice Ministry of Housing, the country’s current qualitative and quantitative deficit totals 630,000 houses, or 51 percent of the total population.

Local governments, state institutions, non-governmental organizations and international organizations have made great efforts to respond to the housing needs of affected families. Support from these institutions concentrate on the most affected zones.

Through the work carried out by its affiliate branches, Habitat El Salvador has reached both sectors, concentrating its efforts on providing support to those families in need of adequate housing, without discrimination.

*One monthly minimum wage in El Salvador is US$144, so a family earning two minimum wages would have a monthly household income of US$288.

(http://www.habitat.org/where-we-build/el-salvador)


Thrivent Builds in El Salvador Community

Thrivent Financial's Mission & Vision :

The Thrivent Way

We are a faith-based membership organization.
Our purpose is to strengthen Christian communities
by helping members be wise with money and
inspiring them to live generously.
We succeed when our members and their communities thrive.
We value our relationships, so we will
be trustworthy in character and competence,
we will treat our members as owners and we will
live balanced and generous lives.

(http://www.thriventbuilds.com/partnership/thrivent/mission.html)

This project focuses on housing, land tenure, and volunteer mobilization and partners with Thrivent Financial for Lutherans to improve the quality of life of low-income, landless Salvadoran families by building 75 homes, using Thrivent and local volunteers.

Part of Thrivent Financial’s mission as a faith-based membership organization is caring for others. Participating in this program with Habitat is a prime example of this mission in action.

T Minus 15 days - A quick geography lesson

This is where we will be travelling to on Nov 2nd. As you can see, El Salvador shares borders with Guatemala and Honduras. It is the only Central American country that does not have a Caribbean coastline.

 

 

El Salvador is divided into 14 departments. We will most likely work in the department of San Salvador which is where the capital is located.

 

 

I hope that this short geography lesson helps you to get a good idea of where we will be during our trip week. El Salvador is the smallest country in Central America, but from what I hear about others that have been there before, the poeple have some of the biggest hearts.

 

Team, I look forward to traveling and working with you. And to all of our followers: get ready to join us for the experience of a lifetime!

 

Please leave comments or questions below; if there is any information in particular you would like shared with the team via this blog, please let me know.

Blog is up and running!

Thrivent Builds, with Habitat for Humanity, El Salvador

November 2 - 10, 2013