Screenshot from Transcending Boundaries documentary video by Sara Canals

In her documentary video “Transcending Boundaries: Perspectives from Parque Internacional La Amistad,” director Sara Canals examines the work of indigenous people, local non-profit organizations and park rangers to protect Parque Internacional La Amistad, the largest nature reserve in Central America. The park, which straddles the border between Panama and Costa Rica, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983.

Indigenous communities, including the Ngobe-Buglé and Bribri tribes, local non-profit groups and park rangers on both sides of the border are collaborating to protect the park from environmental threats through innovative ecotourism projects, organic farming and environmental education. But their efforts are challenged by hydroelectric power plants, overuse of agrochemicals, hunting, deforestation, poor waste management and forest fires.

In May 2015, Sara Canals travelled to Costa Rica and Panama as a Fellow for International Peace Park Expeditions to direct and produce “Transcending Boundaries: Perspectives from Parque Internacional La Amistad.”

View the documentary here: https://vimeo.com/160605246 or the trailer here: link to the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVf4B9Zp8LU

The documentary was selected for the 2016 Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital (EFF) and had its world premiere on March 23 at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars, Washington, D.C.

An interview with Sara Canals: http://dceff.org/category/gaining-access-to-indigenous-voices/

Sara Canals (Andorra, 1990) is a journalist and filmmaker specialized in international affairs. She recently completed a Master of Science in Global Affairs at New York University with a Fulbright Scholarship. While undertaking her studies, Sara Canals worked at the United Nations Department of Public Information and at NY1 News (Time Warner Cable).

She has experience in several European media companies in Barcelona and Andorra. She has been a scriptwriter for historical documentaries, hosting radio shows, reporting for public televisions, writing columns for newspapers, and working as an account executive for strategic communication consultancies.

Sara Canals personal website: www.saracanals.com