The god Apollo fell in love with Daphne, but she refused his advances. He pursued her through the woods relentlessly and she cried out to Gaia, the goddess of the Earth, begging for help. Her pleas were heard and Daphne was transformed into a laurel tree.

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In this interpretation of the story of Daphne, we are representing Mother Earth with the use of tagua nuts and babaçu nuts from the rainforests of Ecuador and Brazil. Both types of nuts have been suspended from chains surrounding Daphne.

In Brazil, at least 350,000 people pick and break the babaçu coconut to sustain their families. Unfortunately, there are few public policies to guarantee peoples' basic rights. Those of women and land distribution remain extremely inequitable. During the 1990s, a collection of local grassroots organizations formed a movement, the Movement of Babaçu nut Breakers (MIQCB), to voice the concerns and demands of women, improve their living conditions and challenge society's perceptions of their status and value.

In Ecuador, the Conservation International started its first conservation-based enterprise, the Tagua Initiative®, in 1990. This initiative provides economic incentives for sustainable harvesting of the tagua palm nut, Phytelephas Equatorialis. At least 35,000 people in Ecuador alone now have jobs that depend upon keeping nearby rainforest lands standing.

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In conclusion to our story of Daphne, Apollo was filled with such sorrow at losing the beautiful Daphne that he has appropriated her leaves as a homage to himself, adorning his head and decorating his temples such that her essence will always be tied to his.

Nancy Pirri and Veronica Riley Martens