Osa Interactive Gardens (O.I.G.) is a rain forest conservation and environmental education project. At the core, this is a conservation project because the 2 hectare property is being converted from agricultural land use back to the native forest. We believe education must always come together with any conservation project. Hundreds of students visit Osa Interactive each year, with the numbers increasing every month as we add new courses for local naturalist guides, gain international attention for visiting school groups, and invite more local schools for free field trips. We collaborate with professors and experts around the world to teach courses on rain forest ecology, entomology, and botany.
A major focus of the project is butterflies because of their importance to the rainforest ecosystem. Many butterfly species are at risk of population collapse due to loss of habitat, pollution, and climate change. By actively protecting and educating about butterflies, all the rainforest benefits. Butterflies are widely loved and it is easy to understand why they need protection, which makes them a great topic to teach about biodiversity and the complex relationships in the environment that support a healthy forest. We teach these concepts in workshops at local schools and host school field trips with local and visiting students. O.I.G. is committed to community development and promotes participation and interaction with nature to bring awareness, understanding, and action for rainforest conservation.
The property has a 25×35 meter enclosed butterfly habitat and botanical gardens, 3 tree house platforms, cabin, classroom, comedor, bathroom, shower, butterfly breeding operations, and hiking trails. The gardens include an extensive collection of plants that attract butterflies and wildlife, medicinal plants, and food crops that have been ecologically integrated into the forest habitat.