Do you know where the Qualla Boundary is? Qualla Boundary is an Indian Reservation of more than 56,000 acres held in trust by the federal government specifically for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians who reside in western North Carolina.

What does this have to do with Costa Rica?

Turns out there’s been a strong link between students of this region and Costa Rican students for quite some time. A group of 10 high school students ages 14 through 17 from Qualla Boundary  is going now into their fourth year of a social entrepreneurship venture  involving the operation of a coffee business named TuYa Café with the help of the Sequoyah Fund, a nonprofit community loan fund,  and the proceeds of this project is used to improve schools in Costa Rica.  Since it started TuYa Café has earned over $14,000.00 in revenues.   The students that take part in this project travel to Costa Rica each summer and volunteer to work on the improvements of the schools, particularly those established in indigenous communities. This year the school that received this benefit was the Tortuguero Elementary, the funds are used in the school’s building’s maintenance, technology projects and a recycling programs.

TuYa Café is part of the Costa Rica Eco Study Tour a cross-cultural eco-study and leadership development program started in 2005 between the Cherokee Preservation Foundation along with the EBCI Cooperative Extension Program and the EARTH University in Costa Rica. This is now an annual event.

The Costa Rica Eco Study Tour strives to provide leadership education in the areas of cultural diversity, service and environmental sustainability