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It all began in 1987 when during the Contra war in Nicaragua, a small group of concerned citizens of Richland Center, Wisconsin contacted the Nicaraguan Embassy in Washington, D.C. with a request to establish a sister city relationship with a town in Nicaragua. The result was the Richland Center-Santa Teresa Sister City Project or SCP, focused on friendship, information and aid.
At first it was only helping with necessities and support to the municipality of Santa Teresa but in 1997, the Wisconsin group received a letter from the Santa Teresa mayor. The letter requested help in protecting sea turtles and aiding the people of the remote, “poorest-of-the-poor” villages of the Chacocente Wildlife Refuge on the Pacific coast where olive ridley sea turtles lay their eggs.
Since then the SCP has focused its efforts in and around Chacocente and has made a significant difference in the lives of people and wildlife living there as well as building a relationship that sustains both communities.
We like to talk to the people from the Richland Center part of the project every year to see what this very interesting and productive collaboration has brought and it is always inspiring.
Along with their partners in the Chacocente Refuge they have projects in agriculture, education, environment, health, migratory bird and sea turtle education and conservation and women’s entrepreneurship, all making positive progress.
Because this was a fundraising show, our conversation was limited but we covered some of the most interesting developments in the past year and you can read about more in the SCP newsletters available on their website and on social media.
Richland Center-Santa Teresa Sister City Project webpage: https://www.santa-teresa.org/
