The Alta Verapaz region of Guatemala is rich with beauty and indigenous culture. Within the region there are cloud forests, which are similar to rain forests. However, instead of rain, the clouds filter through the trees to create precipitation. The forests are rich with wildlife, many being endemic to the region. Unfortunately, when European colonizers came, the indigenous peoples were taught to monocrop corn for mass production. This did not provide the earth with diverse nutrients, causing erosion and the disappearance of the necessary topsoil. When one plot of land became arid, the people would slash and burn the cloud forest to make room for more milpas (cornfields). The cloud forests in the region are becoming more and more scarce.

The Community Cloud Forest Conservation is an organization created in the hopes to combat this problem. They spend time educating children of the villages about healthier agriculture practices that will benefit both the soil and the nutrition that the people will receive by using a more diverse set of crops. The farm on which the organization is located has large patches of reforested mountains, which are now rife with diverse wildlife.

I had the privilege of revisiting this place after spending a week there during my Cross-Cultural. I knew I had to go back. While I was there this summer, I visited seven different rural villages, went on night expeditions with herpetologists from the United Kingdom to find reptiles and amphibians, and learned more about a country that I can call a second home. It was a photographic challenge that was well worth the anxiety I went through traveling alone. I hope that with my photos I can tell the story of this incredible community and the environment that they live in.