not have the opportunity to learn fine arts such as painting, sculpture, poetry and story writing. And for a country so rich in the music and dance arts to not have an emphasis in these areas was a loss for every child. One of the programs currently under implementation by the foundation is to supply rural schools with a set of Spanish language art books that cover painting, sculpture, poetry and story writing. These would then be given to the school for their library and as some schools do not have a library, it would be the start of a long-term collection to benefit all students. In early 2013, the Peguero Foundation started a second major program called "Education for Rural Children". It focuses on keeping young children from rural farm areas in school and out of the fields. The initiation of the program included onsite visits and partnerships with agricultural businesses that work directly with rural families and a push to help ensure those families understand the value of their children's education. Art and the preservation of the Dominican Rainforest The Mariposa Cocoa Preserve is a private preservation initiative owned and run by the Peguero family that combines sustainable organic cocoa farming practices and forest management with the protection of wildlife and nature. Located just west of Miches, the preserve is only accessible via footpath and horseback. The countryside within the preserve was a primary landscape subject in many of the earliest Peguero paintings. Tours of the Mariposa Cocoa Preserve are by invitation only with an annual artist expedition. Two eco-political works on loan to the Art in Embassies Program In 2019 two major Peguero art works were loaned to the United States Department of State, Art in Embassies Program to be displayed in the Chisinau, Moldova exhibition. The first painting, “The Emerald Hills of Quisqueya” (2003) was produced with symbolism intended to cast a light onto the social and environmental issues she was seeing while working in the Dominican Republic countryside. The second work “The Cow on the Beach” (2017) was created to document the landscapes surrounding Miches prior to new tourist development and the effects of climate change. See also List of 20th-century women artists List of Dominican painters List of Nova Southeastern University alumni List of people from Florida List of people from New York City List of sculptors References Mateo, Armando "Arte Dominicano Actual: Arte