Climate Action Brazil Project #22098

Forests4Water Brazil: Community Climate Action

by Iracambi

Forests4Water Brazil: Community Climate Action

Project Report | Aug 30, 2016
Almost there!

By Guilherme Valvasori | Project Leader

Belisario - District with 18 reforestation plots

Hello, dear friends of Forest 4 Water!

Expectations are high for this year's reforestation, and we've been working hard on the preparations to make sure we are ready when the time comes. It's time for the news!

On last Friday, Project Coordinator Gui invited all Iracambi staff members for a meeting where he presented this year's family farmers, the strategies adopted in each property and proposed a logistic planning to make things happen. It might surprise you, dear reader, but reforestation is not only about riding motorcycles through idyllic scenarios and loosing the count of how many cups of coffee you've taken with different family farmers - though we must admit these things are an important part of the process around here. Reforestation demands a lot of hard work, team effort and a good deal of planning.

Nobody really nows when the rain season will start, especially during these Climate Change times we are living. If rain season is unpredictable, so is our planting season. Planting trees is like running against time. Baby trees must take advantage of the seasonal humidity in order to survive the most stressful moment of their lives: leaving our cozy nursery and adapting to the real world. For this reason, we must have a solid ReforesTeam prepared to take action at the first drop of water, and their work must be fast and efficient. We are beginning the reforestation plot preparation next weekend, so when the rain comes every seedling will have a place on the ground to call their own. It will save decisive time and energy of our ReforesTeam. In the last tree count at our nursery, we had more than 6000 seedlings, which will be planted in 25 properties in two different municipalities.

This year, besides planting seedlings, we shall also test different recovering techniques such as inoculating Efficient Microorganisms (EM) collected in the forest in all seedlings, spreading bromelias - famous to be natural water tanks - on the reforestation plots and also using fast growth stem cuttings to protect slower growth native trees - all cheap techniques already familiar to our local family farmers. We are all happy and excited for the chance to partner with the local community in finding a respecful way to preserve Forest and Water.

In this decisive moment we must, once again, ask for your kind generosity. We still lack the resources to hire two extra staff member for our ReforesTeam. After all, we will need all the help we can get and creating job oportunities during the planting season is an important way of valuing people from the local community, the true guardians of both Forests and Water!

With our best forest Regards,

Gui, Fagner, Toni, Arielle, Luiz, Binka, Robin and all "Forest 4 Water" ReforesTeam

View of Rosario da Limeira - 7 reforestation plots

Lurdinha - Family farmer at her organic gardening

Local spring totally exposed

Empty house because of the lack of water

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Jun 1, 2016
Time to celebrate new partnerships!

By Guilherme Valvasori | Project Leader

Local spring with amazing view for the State Park

Hello, dear friends and supporters,

Half a year far from the rain season and reforestation efforts, we have amazing news to share.

First, we've been choosen (among more than 1500 other initiatives in Brazil) for a partnership with "Brazil Foundation", which will support our reforestation program for 12 months. Though the grant is not enough to cover all expenses, it shall be sufficient to guarantee 20 plantings at the end of the year. All the family farmers have been selected already, mainly based on their urgency, and their seedlings are vigorously growing in our tree nursery while you read this report.

Furthermore, last week, our friends from the Franciscan Association of Belisario told us that our project for building sustainable sceptic tanks in rural communities next to the State Park Serra do Brigadeiro had been aproved for a church's grant. It will be a great chance to improve the life quality of rural communities living by the park's mountain range, protect their water and biodiversity resources and also work with strategic local communities.

As you can see, we ve been keeping our hands busy, working hard with the surrounding communities to make sure we have the maximum positive impact with the resources available. Still, none of this would be real without the support of our friends and collaborators from GlobalGiving, our first succesfull partnership. It was your donation that initiated our "Forest $ Water" project when all we had was a problem with our springs drying up and a 1983 motorbike.

We invite you to celebrate our acomplishments with us!

Gui, Fagner, Binka, Arielle, Toni and all Forest 4 Water ReforesTeam

Forest corridor expansion and spring recovery site

Spring surrounded by eroded pasture land

Recent forest growing around spring

Links:

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Mar 8, 2016
Marchs Waters

By Guilherme Valvasori | Project Coordinator

Reforestation up the hill!

March has just begun, but here at Iracambi, we are already celebrating the successes of our reforestation program!

In the past two months, we have been able to connect with 28 farming families interested in rehabilitating their springs through the process of reforestation. Of these, we have chosen to collaborate with 12 families based on the urgency of their land/water/situation. By the end of the month, we plan to establish partnerships with a total of 17 families located throughout eight rural communities and two municipalities of Serra do Brigadeiro. This more than doubles the reforestations we had in 2015. By 2017, we want to expand to reach out to all families willing to participate in our initiative.

February’s non-stop rainfall came as a surprise to all of us. We worked hard to replant seedlings which survived the transition from the forest nursery and fended off hungry ants in the field. Within the month, we hosted two reforestation efforts and for the first time in 16 years, we made sure there were no spare seedlings left in Iracambi’s forest nursery.

So, supporters – what does Iracambi want?

First off, we must thank all of you whom have generously helped us reach our goals. We owe everything to the international donors who provide resources for our seedlings and gas in our tanks.

Secondly, we would like to tell you that our project has been creating a much bigger impact than we expected. Reforestation is an important step – but it is only one of many that needs to be taken in order to ensure the people of Serra do Brigadeiro have access to clean water and have nature as a partner who brings both income and life quality. This demands simple items such as environmental friendly septic tanks and rainfall storage systems as well as more complex, structural changes towards organic farming, community planning and increased environmental education. The community connections and data collection made through the reforestation project have been essential in transitioning ideas from abstract possibilities to attainable goals, both for Iracambi and other agents of our community (schools, church, local authorities).

For all these reasons, our sincere thank you from all the people whose lives Forest4Water has somehow improved,

Gui, Toni, Fagner, Binka, Arielle

Local friend Juliana gives a hand!

Students from Rios Federal Rural Uni visiting

Student from Rio participates in forest enrichment

Seedlings waiting for transplantation

Juliana and Luiz show how its done!

Local ReforesTeam!

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