Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic reforests a fifth of the country in 10 years

February 29, 2024 | By Peter Schulte | -, Change Milestones

Plan Yaque, founded in 2009, brings together 30 organizations to conserve the Yaque River basin, the Dominican Republic’s lifeline. The plan’s simplicity rests in convincing landowners that reforestation is not only an ecological need but also beneficial to their well-being. By 2019, Plan Yaque and other environmental efforts have restored 18 percent of damaged land, ranking as Latin America’s second-largest land recovery.

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The U.S. and six other nations commit to unabated coal phase-out

December 2, 2023 | By Peter Schulte | -, Change Milestones

At the COP28 Climate Summit in Dubai, the U.S., Czech Republic, Cyprus, Dominican Republic, Iceland, Kosovo and Norway in formally joining the alliance, which was launched in 2017 by the U.K. and Canada. The new members have committed to not developing new unabated coal power plants and phasing out existing unabated coal plants.

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The Dominican Republic adopts its first constitution

November 6, 1844 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

The Dominican Republic’s first constitution was adopted on November 6, 1844. The state was commonly known as Santo Domingo in English until the early 20th century.

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px Estatutos de la Universidad de Santo Tomás de Aquino Santo Domingo

Universidad de Santo Tomás de Aquino, the first university in the New World, is founded

October 28, 1538 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

Founded during the reign of Charles I of Spain, it was originally a seminary operated by Catholic monks of the Dominican Order. Later, the institution received a university charter by Pope Paul III’s papal bull.

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Spanish colonists found the city of Santo Domingo

July 31, 1496 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

Dating from 1493, when the Spanish settled on the island, and officially from 5 August 1498, Santo Domingo became the oldest European city in the Americas.

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The Arawak people arrive on and settle the island of Hispaniola

July 30, 1200 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

The Arawak tribe originated in the Orinoco Delta, spreading from Venezuela. They traveled to Hispaniola around 1200 C.E.

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Humans arrive on and settle the island of Hispaniola

January 1, 1002 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

For at least 5,000 years before Christopher Columbus discovered America for the Europeans, the island, which he named Hispaniola, was inhabited by indigenous peoples whom he called “Indians.”

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