WWF INVOLVENENT IN BRAZIL
WF has been working since 1991 to establish an independent, national
WWF Organization in Brazil. The representative office established
in 1990 now includes a multidisciplinary team who actively
support the projects and provides an information service for Brazilian
audiences.
The Brazil programme has recently shifted from a regional approach,
to a thematic approach, structured around WWF's global strategic
priorities.
Establishment and management of protected areas holds priority.
In addition to direct support for individual protected areas,
WWF aims to improve Brazil's national network of protected areas.
Measures include training park staff, encouraging the involvement
of local communities and advocacy work aimed at improving legislation.
Sustainable development is another cornerstone of the Brazil programme.
Rural poverty in Brazil has long been recognized as one of the
root causes of overexploitation of natural resources and encroachment
on protected areas. In response, WWF's integrated conservation
and development projects (ICDPs) are designed to ensure that conservation
of natural resources does not take place at the expense of local
communities and that these communities are closely involved in
sustainable resource management projects.
These projects are focused on the country's extractive as well
as indigenous reserves. In two extractive reserves (Amapá
and Rondônia) WWF works as an operational partner for bilateral
aid agencies. There are also projects with four of the country's
indigenous peoples (Xavante, Kaxinawá, Tikuna, and Nambiquara).
WWF support in extractive and indigenous reserves includes basic
community organization and help in diversifying production and
improving the marketing of a variety of products ranging from
rubber to palm heart and Brazil nuts.
In a country as diverse as Brazil conservation of endangered species
- another of WWF's global strategic priorities - is often the
"raison d'être" for a project but never the sole
focus. It is one aspect of WWF's integrated approach to conservation
crystallized in the ICDP concept. A sea turtle protection scheme
along Brazil's 7,400 km coastline is a good example of this. Up
until a decade ago, the five species of sea turtles which nest
along the sandy Brazilian beaches were killed for their meat,
eggs, and shells. Then in 1980 a marine conservation programme
- Project Tamar - was launched to protect the turtles and their
nesting sites. Today the poachers have turned gamekeepers - paid
to patrol beaches, checking on nests and gathering some of the
eggs to be reburied and hatched in openair hatcheries. Last
season a record 265,000 baby turtles were released into the sea.
The WWFsupported project includes an environmental education
programme and has also spawned a cottage handicraft industry based
on - but not using - the sea turtles. Local villagers now sell
papiermâché and carved wooden turtles, turtlemotif
jewellery and Tshirts, giving them an economic incentive
to protect the sea turtles.
A less tangible - though equally important - area of work for
WWF in Brazil involves supporting existing treaties such as Ramsar
(The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, especially
as Waterfowl Habitat), and CITES (Convention on International
Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna), as well
as the implementation of new treaties such as those on Climate
Change and Biodiversity negotiated at the Earth Summit (UNCED)
in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. Other important policy work includes
monitoring the environmental impact of government agricultural
and forestry policies and largescale infrastructure development
projects such as the World Bank regional development projects
in Rondônia and Mato Grosso and the ParaguayParaná
waterway project.
Environmental education is used as a key conservation tool in
Brazil. Within ICDP it is introduced informally to enable local
communities to decide on natural resourceuse. Elsewhere
environmental education is being developed as part of the school
curriculum. Other activities include funding a newsletter for
environmental education teachers, small grants to encourage the
development of inservice education programmes for teachers,
and a weekly radio programme for Amazonia on conservation and
sustainable development. The radio programme, "Natureza Viva",
is a joint venture between Radiobrás, the national radio
network, Amazonian NGOs, and the UN Fund for Women (UNIFEM). Radio
is an ideal medium in this area where illiteracy and the lack
of electricity limit the practical use of TV and the print media.
Many indigenous and environmental groups regularly tune into this
popular weekly programme.
In order to increase its effectiveness in Brazil, WWF works in
partnership with other conservation and development NGOs and government
agencies. Over the past decade the number of NGOs has mushroomed
and both state and federal environmental agencies have also experienced
rapid growth. There are now some 2,000 NGOs active in conservation
work. WWF provides financial support, technical assistance and
training to help improve the operational capacity of its main
NGO partners. Workshops have been held on a variety of topics
ranging from dispute resolution procedures to preparing project
proposals and fundraising.
Back to the previous page
|