kalu yala
Diwigdi Valiente says that many older Guna people don’t understand climate change, especially since they have lived traditional lives that contribute very little to the problem. (Alex Schwartz/Medill)
Northwestern University
Medill's Jessica Mordacq reports from Panama: The San Blas Islands and Kalu Yala are two very different environments in Panama that both revolve heavily around tourism.
.jpg%3Fitok=Vyd1eHHm)
The father and son pair, Aresio Valiente López and Diwigdi Valiente, pose for a portrait in the university where López teaches, la Universidad de Panamá. The two share a dynamic bond, a call and response relationship of bouncing ideas off of each other, always out of a sense of mutual pride. (Colin Boyle/Medill)
Northwestern University
Medill's Laura Zornosa reports from Panama: Sustainability means preserving the culture of San Blas’ sinking islands for this environmental advocate.
Ingredients from the farm and local stores to be used in a cooking class at Kalu Yala. (Kelley Czajka/Medill)
Northwestern University
Kalu Yala's culinary staff and interns are serving up sustainable and delicious meals in the Panamanian jungle.
Kalu Yala welcomes visitors and interns with a scenic, yet challenging hike up and down the valley. (Photos by Cassie Majewski/Medill)
Northwestern University
Hoping to maximize the benefits of time spent in nature, a group of interns in Panama are investigating the possibility of a new model for a holistic mental health approach.
Northwestern University
Young people are exploring food systems through farming. We compared the group we met while in Panama with an urban farm on the South Side of Chicago.
Northwestern University
The podcast and accompanying videos describe a distiller's exploration into sustainable methods of distilling alcohol in the jungles of Panama.
Northwestern University
A group of design thinking interns at the Kalu Yala Institute are imagining and implementing a new vision for communal living. But not everything is going quite as planned.
Kalu Yala is situated in Panama's Tres Brazos Valley. (Photos by Emma Sarappo)
Northwestern University
Real estate scion Jimmy Stice is looking to help the planet and mitigate climate change – through a startup. At his "eco-city" Kalu Yala, situated in Panama's Tres Brazos Valley, he's encouraging interns to learn to do the same.
Panama’s goat-like cows graze along the road to Kalu Yala. (Emma Sarappo/Medill)
Northwestern University
One sustainable jungle town in Panama hopes to repopulate iguanas in their natural habitat and begin using them as an alternative meat source to cows in the tropics.
Harper Simpson, former agriculture intern at Kalu Yala, wears jewelry to remind her to stay strong in times of hardship. (Cassandra Majewski/Medill)
Northwestern University
In a place so focused on environmental sustainability, an important caveat at the eco-town Kalu Yala is its struggle to create an environment that is mentally sustainable.