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Avocado Rise, Chapter I

Avocado Rise

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Sierra de Bahoruco, located in the Dominican Republic and classified as a Biosphere Reserve by Unesco, is under attack. Illegal charcoal production and agriculture in the face of global avocado demand have been added to the list of enemies of one of the most beautiful forests in the Caribbean. Avocado Rise is a non-profit collaborative project from Tropicfeel and Eldorado. Watch the video

Avocado Rise by Bernat Mestres and Mario Dávalos, Chapter I

Avocado Rise is directed by Bernat Mestres and features biologist Yolanda León, research professor of Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo (INTEC) and specialist in coastal marine environments. The story was uncovered by Mario Dávalos, CEO of Capital DBG, Santo Domingo, executive producer and partner at Eldorado. Mario travels as an artist, writer and photographer to some of the last wild places on Earth, but the Sierra de Bahoruco still holds a special place in his heart.

“Land grabbing for individual profit inside natural parks has become a common activity in the Dominican Republic, in many cases overseen by the government. When you see how vulnerable ecosystems are when facing certain uncontrolled production practices you realise the urgent need for more responsible and conscious consumption.”
Bernat Mestres, Director

 

Directed by Bernat Mestres
Featuring Yolanda León, research professor of Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo (INTEC)
Executive producers Mario Davalos, Rafa Martínez, Albert Folch and Pol González Novell from Folch and Alberto Espinós and Guillermo Bargu from Tropicfeel
Produced by White Horse

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Traveller/s
Bernat Mestres

Bernat Mestres

Filmmaker
Bernat is a film director and DOP based in Barcelona. He studied film direction and graduated from ESCAC. Since then, he has been working in the industry for companies and institutions. He has filmed in the US, Europe, the Middle East, Center America and North Africa and worked in projects for The Guardian (Killing Gävle, 2018) or the Oscar-winning Bedlam Productions (American B-Side, 2017). Some of his works have been premiered at MoMa (Fin del Siglo, 2019) and got a special mention for cinematography at Chicago International Music Film Festival.
Mario Dávalos

Mario Dávalos

Artist, Writer and Photographer
Mario is a Dominican artist, writer and photographer. His work has been featured in the NY Times, Discover Wildlife by BBC and Outdoor Photographer Magazine. He is the author of “Narraciones para Incriminarme”(2003), “Todo lo que quiero es olvidar” (2012), “Wildscapes”(2013) and “Africa: narraciones de un viajero”(2014). Mario works in some of the last wild places of Earth, producing images that explore beauty and silence. He is 40 and lives in Santo Domingo.
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