Traveling to Colombia: A Journey to the Heart of the Caribbean

Colombia, with its vibrant culture, rich history, and stunning landscapes, has become a must-visit destination for travelers seeking adventure and beauty. From the bustling streets of Bogotá to the sandy beaches of Cartagena, Colombia offers a blend of natural wonders and urban experiences. For those seeking a more tranquil escape, the Caribbean island of Tierra Bomba provides a unique glimpse into local life, where community, nature, and sustainability intersect in unexpected ways.

A Glimpse into Life on Tierra Bomba

On the Caribbean island of Tierra Bomba, Colombia, the morning sun casts its warmth over a group of schoolchildren making their way toward the beach. Two of them carry surfboards above their heads, while many others walk barefoot through the town of Tierra Bomba, navigating through uneven dirt roads littered with trash. They pass vibrant homes with tin roofs and makeshift clotheslines.

As they approach the beach, the scene changes. The simple concrete homes give way to palm-thatched bungalows with swimming pools, surrounded by colorful flowers. Playa Linda’s shore is lined with bars, umbrellas, and loungers, while jetskis zip across the sparkling waters.

The children eagerly argue over the surfboards as they prepare for their weekly surfing lesson. One of them even uses a floating tree trunk as an impromptu board.

Merk Morales, a local surfer who learned through Amigos del Mar, carries a board with fins made from recycled plastic. Behind him, the modern skyline of Cartagena looms in the distance.

Amigos del Mar: Empowering the Community Through Surfing

The Amigos del Mar foundation organizes these surfing lessons as part of its mission to provide social support and teach water sports to the community. The foundation is also addressing a major issue on the island: plastic waste.

On Tierra Bomba, plastic trash such as bottle caps, bags, wrappers, and toys regularly washes up on the pristine beaches, accumulating due to the lack of reliable waste collection services.

The foundation’s Olas Paz (Clean Wave Project) initiative has transformed the thousands of plastic bottle caps polluting the island into surfboard fins.

Amigos del Mar collected over 7,000 bottle caps last year through beach cleanups and by encouraging locals to gather caps themselves. Each surf fin is made from around 18 bottle caps, which are ground, melted, and molded into fins.

“The goal was for people on Tierra Bomba, who had never recycled or picked up trash before, to begin this process,” explains Pedro Salazar, director and founder of Amigos del Mar. “It’s difficult to change environmental habits in communities with more pressing issues, but surfing is a powerful motivator.”

For the children to participate in the weekly lessons, they must attend school throughout the week, where they also learn about the environment. This initiative aims to strengthen local education.

Juan José Silva, a surfing instructor and former student of Amigos del Mar, emphasizes the benefits of surfing, particularly for children at risk of losing their way. “Surfing brings peace, happiness, and much more. It’s a way of having fun.”

Challenges and Triumphs of Tierra Bomba

Tierra Bomba is home to around 9,000 people, but it is largely neglected by the Colombian state. While the towering hotels and apartments of Cartagena dominate the island’s horizon, many residents live without basic services like running water, sewage, or electricity.

Although the Colombian government has long promised waste collection services, locals claim no real progress has been made. Instead, a private French company provides irregular waste collection in a small tuk-tuk.

In response, Amigos del Mar also runs an educational program, offering extracurricular lessons on environmental issues, social matters, and English. Last year, it supported 271 children.

“The waste on the ground has value, and that incentive has sparked positive change in the community,” says Salazar, watching the Copa América standup paddleboarding competition in Cartagena, where two of his former students from Tierra Bomba are competing.

Leimer Morales, one of his protégés, says: “I want to be a role model for the island. If I could succeed, others can too. Without surfing, life would be harder—we’d probably be lost.”

However, there are limitations to what Salazar and the local community can achieve. The foundation once ran a plastic bank where people could exchange collected bottle caps for household goods, but that project is currently on hold.

The Olas Paz project has also slowed down due to an overwhelming influx of plastic. The foundation’s headquarters is filled to the brim with caps—piled up in bags, overflowing in pools, and used as decorative elements or pathways.

“We never expected the project to grow so quickly,” says Salazar. “We started with just 20 people, collecting a few kilograms of bottle caps over the first few months. In seven months, we collected almost 18 tonnes with the help of over 370 people.”

The local families continue to collect and store bottle caps, hoping that the project will resume soon.

Plastic Pollution and Efforts to Tackle It

Tierra Bomba’s plastic problem is worsened by the influx of tourists to nearby Cartagena. The city saw 624,000 visitors in 2023, a 35% increase from the previous year, leading to more plastic waste on the island’s beaches.

Francisco Castillo, an environmental advisor to Cartagena’s mayor, acknowledges the problem: “Plastic waste, much of it from tourists, accumulates on our beaches because of inadequate disposal practices.”

Though there’s still a lack of infrastructure to deal with plastic pollution, the local government is focusing on environmental education and circular economy projects to address the issue.

As plastic pollution continues to rise, the Colombian government has recently implemented a law banning eight types of single-use plastics, such as carrier bags, straws, and cotton swabs. Castillo sees this as a positive step, but emphasizes that strict enforcement is crucial.

Despite these challenges, Salazar remains optimistic. “Changing people’s habits takes time, but we are committed to making a difference.”