Vision

From CFI

Adventures in Education! Preparing students to forge a peaceful, sustainable, diverse, healthy, respectful, balanced, equitable, and hopeful future.

Cloud Forest Institute was formed as a 501(c)(3) scientific and educational organization in 1996. CFI works to offer students educational alternatives in international settings that address issues of environmental and social significance thru Service Learning while striving to exist sustainably with the natural environment. CFI is working in two ways:

1. By developing institute sites in or near protected biodiversity œhot spots. The first site will be located in tropical Andean cloud forest of Ecuador, South America. The second site will be located in the California floristic zone of Mendocino County, Northern California. As these institute sites become financially self-sufficient CFI will work to develop sister sites in other biodiversity hot spots around the world.
2. CFI networks with other organizations, institutions, and individuals whose work fits in line with the CFI mission statement. Rather than competing in the non-profit sector CFI believes collaboration is the key to success, CFI does this through administration of the membership program, World Institute for Sustainability Education (WISE).

WISE works with organizations, NGOs and educational institutions, and private individuals interested in or working on international education with focuses on ecological conservation and rehabilitation, and social justice. Sister institute relationships will be developed through this collaboration.

The current Board of Directors (BOD) of Cloud Forest Institute elected in August 28th 2004 took on their roles in succession of, and collaboration with, many innovative thinkers and doers.