Casa de Áak
What Casa de Áak is
Casa de Áak is a nonprofit organization that works to protect sea turtles by establishing the first hatchery in the shoreline of Champerico Beach, Guatemala. This project not only focuses on establishing a hatchery, but it also focuses on using environmental education and tourism through sea turtles programs.
Meaning of Casa de Áak
Our name is inspired by one of the Guatemala's culture, the Maya. Casa is the Spanish word for house which represents the hatchery as a home where sea turtle eggs can be incubated free from threats, and Áak is the Mayan word for turtle. Sea turtles have been in our oceans for million of years and are a species of important ecological and cultural significance.
What we are doing
Casa de Áak is working to raise awareness among Guatemalans and visiting tourists about the need to conserve natural resources through establishment of the first hatchery and a program of education about the turtles and their ecological roles in the coastal and marine ecosystems.
Our Mission
To conserve, protect and manage local endangered sea turtles both in the water and on the beach through ecotourism, education, volunteerism, and an engaged community.
Goals
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Promote the turtle friendly hook with the local fishermen in order to reduce by 90% the sea turtle death caused by accidental catch.
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Obtain an 85-90% hatch rate each nesting cycle by using rigorous procedures of temperature, oxygenation, depth of nests, and density of eggs.
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Recruit egg collectors to participate in the 20% donation program.
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Attract tourists to visit the hatchery and increase the tourism in Champerico.