Dominican Environmental Documentary Exhibited in Upper Manhattan School

The Salomé Ureña School, situated in Upper Manhattan, was the perfect venue chosen to exhibit this past May 23 the documentary Cacú: un cambio por la vida (unofficial translation: Cacú: A Change for Life) to a group of parents whose children attend the school.

The 79-minute documentary, directed by Guatemalan/Dominican photojournalist Marvin del Cid, features the revealing story of five fishermen from the underprivileged community of
Manresa, situated in the southwest section of Santo Domingo, who transitioned from being sea turtle nest predators to full-fledged conservationists.

Their four-year transformation process was spearheaded by marine biologist Omar Shamir Reynoso who developed this
one-of-a-kind project in the Dominican Republic to bring together fishermen and communities to work on conservationist efforts.

The showing began at 1:00 p.m. with welcome remarks delivered by Paul Goris, engineer and coordinador of Funglode’s educational technologies, who also introduced producer Marvin del Cid and Dominican marine biologist Omar Shamir Reynoso.  Both briefly spoke on the making of the documentary and, when the documentary concluded,
invited the audience to participate in a lively question-and-answer session.

Mrs. Lidia Aguasanta, Parents and Family Coordinator for the Children’s Aid Society, also spoke to the audience at the end of the showing to specifically thank the GFDD for giving them the opportunity to organize the special showing in the Upper Manhattan school.  She expressed that “We are extremely pleased to be able to provide parents with learning spaces where they
can become more informed on situations that are occurring in their countries and how when all work together they can change the way a community thinks and cares about its environment.”