Certification Ceremony for Participants of First-Ever Educational Expedition to Pico Duarte

New York, June 21, 2012

Tomorrow on June 22, 2012, the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF), an initiative of Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) and Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo (FUNGLODE), will host a certification ceremony for the students, educators and administrators that participated in the first-ever DREFF expedition to Pico Duarte. The event will take place at 10:00 am in the auditorium at FUNGLODE headquarters in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

The celebration will include welcoming remarks from GFDD New York Director and FUNGLODE Director of Formative Activities, Yamile Eusebio, and an address by professional mountaineer Karim Mella, which will highlight achievements, lessons learned, student accomplishments, and how students can continue to serve as multipliers.

Students will be awarded certificates of achievement and will have an opportunity to openly share and reflect upon what they learned and experienced during the four-day trek.

The event will also feature a preview of the short film produced by GFDD's Multimedia Department on the expedition, which will be debuted during the second edition of the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival, scheduled to take place September 5-9, 2012.

To conclude the event, GFDD Multimedia Assistant, Braudin Eusebio, will speak to students about the multiple ways in which they can become involved with the 2012 Festival.

About the expedition
Forty-five students from three Dominican high-schools -- Centro de Excelencia Media Profesora Cristina Billini Morales "Fe y Alegria", Centro de Excelencia República de Colombia, and Centro Educativo República de Guatemala – had the opportunity to scale the Dominican Republic's highest summit alongside Dominican professional mountaineer and seasoned Everest trekker, Karim Mella.

The students were accompanied by 20 other staff members, including GFDD representatives, professional climbers Steve Maison and Zachary Zaireff, a doctor, a cook, a musician, a photographer and 10 volunteers.

GFDD and FUNGLODE equipped students with gear consisting of backpacks, coats, gloves, hats, t-shirts and flashlights. Prior to ascending, the students were prepped by the expedition's official doctor on the importance of hydration, field maintenance and other important aspects related to hygiene and trail maintenance.

The expedition also included lectures by the students' teachers on the geography of the Cordillera Mountain Range, rivers, fauna, flora, the climate of the Dominican Republic, environmental protection, forest fires, reforestation and first aid, among other topics.

The innovative initiative was the outcome of the first edition of the Festival, celebrated in September 2011, and the resulting national and international network that emerged. The expedition provided participating students with the unique chance to develop an emotional connection with nature.

An important message of the trek was to impart in students the importance of leaving the park cleaner than they found it.

GFDD and FUNGLODE hope that the momentous experience will live in the hearts and minds of the student participants long after the expedition, and will instill within them a profound respect for the natural environment and its resources.

The expedition to Pico Duarte reflects DREFF's overall mission to interact with leading figures in the environmental community and to make a difference.

The participating students were selected based on their ability to express in writing the importance of forests and natural resources in the Dominican Republic. The expedition was made possible thanks to collaboration with Dominican professional mountaineers Karim Mella and Federico Jovine.

About DREFF
The Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF) raises awareness and deepens understanding of environmental issues among Dominican audiences, while celebrating the beauty and diversity of the country's natural heritage. Through screening a diverse selection of high-quality films on matters of environmental concern, and organizing panel discussions with environmental experts, filmmakers and other stakeholders, the Festival seeks to foster dialogue and to inspire Dominican audiences to adopt practices that will ensure for the health and environmental sustainability of the country.

By bringing together youth, scholars, experts, activists, filmmakers, representatives of public, private and nongovernmental institutions and the general public, the Festival promotes programs and projects that contribute to environmental protection, conservation and sustainability.

Related links:
www.globoverdedominicano.org
www.diccionariomedioambiente.org