Green Race and environmental festival in Managua
Faustino Salcedo | Apr 13, 2012
The event to benefit a natural reserve will count with 1,500 runners and an environmental concert with many artists.
Imagine a 5 kilometers race on which the main purpose is promote the environmentand natural resources preservation. Now think about that after the competition, will take place an environmental festival with a concert with many national artists involved. All this is going to happen next May 13 at Galerías Santo Domingo, in Managua, and was announced yesterday at a press conference, chaired by the organizers committee.
The Green race is an event organized by the Fondo Natura (Natura Fund) along with several companies that support the event as part of corporate environmental responsibility. The runners registration price is C$120. All the money collected will be used to support the Fondo Natura. Those who want to participate in the event as volunteers, have to go to the booths located in Galerías Santo Domingo; registration is free.
One of the biggest attractions of the event, is that every runner registered will have to plant 4 trees in the Natural Reserve of the Fondo Natura, located in the León Viejo highway (Managua). According to the scientist Jaime Incer Barquero, president of the Fondo Natura, the nurseries are being constructed at the reserve and will be ready for the month of June. The plan is to plant 1,000 trees every Sunday of this month. The process of reforestation pursues planting shade trees, which are ideal for the accumulation of water. According to Barquero, the plan is to sow in the areas that have been without any green area.
The event is unique in Central America, said the organizers, and is intended to bring together 3,000 people adding volunteers, organizers, and runners. According to Carlos Gazol, responsible for key accounts and events of Telefonica Movistar, there are 1,700 people registered and it is believed that they will exceed the estimated number. The organizers group pretend to repeat the event every year, each with a greater wingspan.
The Green Race will begin at 6:30 AM on Sunday May 13. The output and the target will be in Galerías Santo Domingo. The distance that every participant will run is 2 kilometers toward the South, until they reach MAGFOR, then the way is toward the Santo Domingo viewpoint and returns by the rear of Galerías Santo Domingo. Each runner will carry a chip that will control the time of arrival, said William Copp, secretary of environmental affairs of the Embassy of the United States and part of the organizing committee.
During the tour the volunteers will be located at strategic points, in which will be providing water to the runners as well as collecting the garbage. All volunteers will be trained so that they can attend the runners correctly. The team of volunteers will be worked along with the Group of riders "Managua Runners", a key group in the technical aspects of the event.
At the end of the race will take place a free environmental festival, in which will preforme the Nicaraguan singer/songwriter Katia Cardenal, La Cuneta Son Machin band, Malos Hábitos and other members of the Movistar music group. During the festival there will be more information about the reforestation process as well as recommendations for the environment protection made by the Fondo Natura.
Translated by Olga Ortiz Kurashvili