ZAPOPAN, Jalisco;
"I am pleased to know that Don Cástulo Romero Valencia, during his lifetime, had the vision to give custody of our institutions in order to conserve our precious Bosque de la Primavera, that is transcending beyond personal or economic interests," said Dr. José Antonio Esquivias Romero, rector of the university.
In order to preserve and promote environmental education, Universidad Panamericana Campus Guadalajara together with ITESO, Universidad Marista de Guadalajara and UNIVA, received as a donation a set of properties inside the Primavera forest, given by Mr. Cástulo Romero Valencia (r.i.p.), whose condition was to preserve and cultivate the seed of environmental awareness in students.
About the Spring Forest
This is an area with an important biodiversity of flora and fauna, in which at least 29 species of mammals have been documented, including puma, lynx, coyote, peccary, and white-tailed deer, among others. There is also an important variety of terrestrial orchids.
However, it is also a highly threatened and vulnerable area due to different factors such as fires, accelerated urban growth, and an exponential increase in visitation, among others.
Dr. Esquivias emphasized that the Bosque de la Primavera "is a privilege that not many regions have, likewise it is recognized as the lungs of the people of Guadalajara and its metropolitan area, in such a way that together with Lake Chapala, they have provided a climate that many regions of the world envy, but that every day we see deteriorating more", due to this he pointed out that it is necessary the participation of the Panamerican together with other institutions, in order to stop the wear produced by the lack of ecological conscience.
Since then, the educational institutions that have land in the same area have carried out various conservation actions, both individually and jointly.
With the creation of the "La Primavera Inter-University Forest" it was decided that from now on it would be necessary to form a common front with the objective of making better use of the capacities of each institution, joining efforts to organize resources in a more structured way.
"The most important thing is that we have a great opportunity to do something for the city, to work to take care of our forest, the Bosque de la Primavera, which gives life to Guadalajara," said Mr. Cástulo Romero Garibay, son of Don Cástulo Romero Valencia.
The Importance of Conservation
In this sense, Bosque Interuniversitario proposed a management model based on academic, scientific and cultural collaboration, for the enrichment of the educational functions that are carried out in the care of nature and the environment, and that also, with a vocation of service, strengthen the community and the care of the Bosque de la Primavera, all this through the precautionary principle, putting conservation before exploitation, as well as promoting the human right to a healthy environment.
Mr. Romero Garibay emphasized the importance of the Spring Forest ecosystem for the population and what it represents sustainably for the city of Guadalajara, so he believes that, "it is not only the protection of the forest or the trees and fauna that will be provided, but also the education that we will provide," he said with the intention that the project will adhere to the ecological plan of the institutions and therefore promote research and specialization in environmental areas.
For Universidad Panamericana it is not only an honor to participate in this project in which educational institutions participate, conserve and care for the Bosque de la Primavera, which can be considered a heritage of Jalisco, but it also represents an unavoidable obligation of the university, since it is part of the institutional mission: to contribute to the construction of a better world.
