Personal Loan
By Ginoris López-Lay, Executive Vice President of Strategic Management at FirstBank
In 2023, we set an ambitious goal: to help protect Puerto Rico’s coastlines by planting 25,000 native trees in three years. Today, having surpassed that goal, we reflect on something that goes far beyond a number: the impact that can be achieved when communities, volunteers, municipalities and organizations come together around a common purpose.
What began as an environmental restoration initiative became one of the largest coastal reforestation efforts led by the private sector in Puerto Rico. Thanks to the participation of hundreds of individuals across the Island and partnerships with municipalities and organizations, Rescate Costero strengthened coastal ecosystems and promoted environmental resilience in some of the areas’ most vulnerable to coastal erosion.
As part of FirstBank’s Uno con el Ambiente program, the initiative was created with a clear purpose: to help mitigate coastal erosion through nature-based solutions. Over the past three years, the program promoted the strategic planting of native species adapted to Puerto Rico’s coastline, helping strengthen the natural barriers that protect our shores from storm surges, extreme weather events and the ongoing effects of erosion.
Much More Than a Number
By the conclusion of the program, Rescate Costero had surpassed its goal of planting 25,000 native trees, impacting more than 44,000 linear feet of coastline across 19 municipalities throughout Puerto Rico. Behind every tree planted is a story of collaboration, environmental education, and community commitment.
More than 1,400 volunteers participated in planting events that transformed vulnerable coastal areas into more resilient spaces prepared to face future environmental challenges.
Trees That Strengthen Our Coastlines
One of the most important aspects of Rescate Costero was the selection of native species that could adapt to Puerto Rico’s coastal conditions and actively contribute to protecting coastal ecosystems.
Through the planting of native trees and shrubs adapted to Puerto Rico’s shoreline, Rescate Costero helped strengthen coastal ecosystems and natural protective barriers. These species play essential roles in maintaining healthy coastlines. Some help stabilize dunes and retain sand, while others strengthen soils, provide habitat for wildlife and contribute to maintaining the ecological balance of coastal ecosystems. Together, they form a natural network of protection that increases the resilience of nearby communities.
An Initiative Driven by Collaboration
Throughout these three years, thousands of volunteers chose to be part of the solution, including students, families, community organizations, FirstBank employees, municipalities and strategic partners who actively participated in planting events across the Island. Each activity served as an opportunity to educate participants about the importance of coastal ecosystems and to foster greater awareness of the environmental challenges facing Puerto Rico.
Many students also found in these events an opportunity to earn green contact hours while directly contributing to an initiative with environmental and community impact.
The experience demonstrated that protecting our coastlines is most effective when approached collectively and when each person recognizes the role they can play in preserving our natural resources.
The True Legacy of Rescate Costero
The trees planted will continue growing for decades to come, strengthening ecosystems, supporting biodiversity and contributing to the natural protection of our coastlines. Their impact will extend far beyond the volunteer planting events, benefiting communities that depend on these spaces and helping build a more resilient Puerto Rico.
As we reach this goal, we celebrate an important achievement, but we also reaffirm a conviction that has guided the program since its inception: protecting our coastlines is a shared responsibility. The more than 25,000 trees planted represent an environmental legacy for Puerto Rico, but they also demonstrate the power of collective action to create lasting change.
For FirstBank, initiatives like Rescate Costero reflect a vision of sustainability that extends beyond our day-to-day operations. We believe that strengthening the resilience of the communities we serve, protecting natural resources and contributing to Puerto Rico’s well-being are part of our responsibility to create long-term value. Sustainability is not simply an environmental goal; it is a way of supporting the future of the communities we serve.
Protecting our coastlines is both an environmental responsibility and an investment in our communities, our natural resources and Puerto Rico’s future.
That is the legacy of Rescate Costero.
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