The Pax Natura Foundation's Bosque Lluvioso Rio Costa Rica Project is an exemplar of the reformation occurring throughout the world. The project began in 1996 when three United States citizens from Utah, during a visit to Costa Rica, recognized the urgent need to preserve a particular 448-acre parcel of rain forest. Mr. Randall Tolpinrud, Mr. Will Connely, and Mr. Jerry Robinson purchased the land, then deeded it back to the Costa Rican nongovernmental organization Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INBio) - the entity commissioned by the Costa Rican Government to establish the country's biodiversity inventory. It is from this genesis of small-scale preservation that the project grew to include the goals of scientific research, environmental education and rain forest restoration.

   It is fitting that this important project rests in the country of Costa Rica - a country unparalleled in natural beauty and enlightened leadership. It is a country small in size that, by example, wields a large circle of influence. In the words of Costa Rican President Abel Pacheco during a May, 2002 presentation in Madrid, Spain to eleven of the world's government leaders:

"It is necessary to reiterate that the real gold and the real petroleum of the future will be water and oxygen: without which there simply won't be life. This is why in my government we are going to take a transcendental step: next to the social and economical guarantees, we are going to incorporate a chapter on environmental guarantees in our Political Constitution."

Through the collaborative efforts of the Costa Rican government, INBio. The Jane Goodall Institute and a distinguished international Board of Trustees, the Pax Natura Foundation envisions a global model of rain forest preservation and restoration. It is our fundamental belief that his model, based on an interactive education exploratory, will lead to a greater understanding of how the human community may live in balance with the natural world. We invite you to join us in this work.