THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
"UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not."
The Lorax - Dr Seuss
Quickly... Do you know where Belize is?
I thought it was in South America, but I was incorrect, it is in Central America bordering Mexico with Caribbean shorelines to the east. You might chock that up to my less than adequate American high school geography, but after an evening at the Royal Geographical Society to preview the docuseries, Unknown Belize I now know a great deal.
The series was 3 years in the making and showcases how Belize is leading the way in efficacious conservation and building a sustainable landscape through invention and ancient wisdom. It boasts more than 100 protected areas, 80% of the country is undeveloped, and 60% of its land surface remains intact forest. Through a collected consciousness and an intuitive government, Belize is utilizing its own resources for sustainability, protecting the ecological environments and the world is watching.
In the 1980s, Francis Ford Coppola visited Belize and was enraptured by the panorama and winsome people and knew he had stumbled into paradise. He purchased a deserted lodge as a family retreat and now the lodge is open to the public. A Coppola family member attended the RGS event along with the High Commissioner of Belize to UK Theresa Rath and celebrity chef Sean Kuylen.
Thank heavens for the uncommon, magnanimous and kind spirited people who devote their lives to conservation and improving our planet. Sustainability should be every country's paramountcy and the hopes are that the docuseries, Unknown Belize will open eyes and create an urge for change to conservation.
