Trees and Education Protect Rainforest in Brazil

Dear donors.

Project “Trees and Education Protect the Atlantic Rainforest” is happy to share this information with donors and project friends.

With the Neutrogena donation, project 'Trees and Education Protect Rainforest in Brazil' surpassed its original funding goal of $60.000, it was considered fully funded.

A new funding goal was needed and the project budget was increased to $200.000 in order to maintain this project in GlobalGiving site and to continue to do the activities listed in the project’s page.

So, “Trees and Education Protect the Atlantic Rainforest” has a new funding goal of $200.000.

This project has already received through GlobalGiving since it started in 2006 around $105,000 and we expect to raise the remaining $95,000 in the next 5 years.  

Since this project began we have already spent $37.000 in several activities and there is $24.000 in the bank, as a reserve to be used when needed.

Project’s Budget for 2012 is of $44.000

Build a Visitor Centre: $ 23.255

Equipments and furniture for Visitor Centre: $ 3.488

Bus rental for student’s transportation: $ 5.087

Educational DVDs: $ 1.162

Folders and brochures: $ 1.744

Hire a Permaculture technical advisor: $ 2.441

Saplings: $ 6.976

Total: $44.156

We are only considering expenses paid with donations funds. Most other project expenses, as salaries, petrol, etc., are paid by SALVEASERRA.

These new donations are already influencing greatly the development of SALVEASERRA - NGO and enlarging its horizons of future activities.

As you know, project has two main objectives that are: 1. The educational “Day in the Forest” ecological trekking, with schools and groups visiting an Atlantic Rainforest protection area and 2. The CETAR Agroforestry project created in 1995 to demonstrate agroforestry systems planting methods.

These donations will make possible to 1. Professionalize our local operations in Valença, Rio de Janeiro State and expand them to two other neighboring counties, Rio das Flores and Barra do Pirai allowing us to increase considerably the number of student we receive every month and 2. Facilitate the creation of a Regional Center of Excellence in Agroforestry, produce more saplings, and increase and ameliorate the plantation areas of trees, palm trees and fruit trees.

These grants will also enable us to produce a good quality educational support material, new brochures and DVDs.

Since last December update we continued our activities but in a slower way, because of students holidays, and as we had to rebuild our little house that was in very bad shape, almost falling and very dangerous for the workers that lived there.

Now we have a new and very nice house, big enough to shelter and house students and visitors while we build the new Visitors Centre, that already started be built.

Please see attached several pictures of the old and new house, the old visitor’s center and construction of new one, of Serra da Concórdia Wildlife Sanctuary visitors, from some students of a new school we are working with and that is going to do the “Day in the Forest” next week, from the 167 saplings this project bought from Antonio, that received a tree nursery from our other GlobalGiving project and from the tree nursery were we produced many and bought 1100 saplings this year.

Please accept my sincere thanks for your help and support.

Roberto Lamego 

Dear donors.

First of all I want to announce that the SALVEASERRA project: “Trees and Education Protect the Atlantic Rainforest”, was the Environment category winner of the 2011 Wave of Change campaign run by the Neutrogena cosmetics company. This was really great and rare opportunity for us and with this big donation we can make plans for the next 4 years, expand our operations to 2 or 3 neighboring counties, receive more groups monthly, hire guides and teachers to help us and provide visitor with information leaflets and DVDs on the Atlantic Rainforest and agroforestry techniques.

With this new donation we can also make plans to increase the reforestation of our areas and the development of the agroforestry demonstration plots. We are planning to plant 5000 trees per year.

Here the Neutrogena campaign site: http://www.neutrogena.com/category/wave%2Bfor%2Bchange.do

We would also like to inform you that from GlobalGiving Gift Card Challenge we are going to receive a bonus grant donation to plant 800 trees in the rainforest of Concordia Mountains Wildlife Sanctuary.

http://www.globalgiving.org/gifts/?rf=fb. This is the perfect right time because the planting season starts now.

We continue with our activities as you will see in attached pictures and links. 

There are pictures of students visiting the Wildlife Sanctuary, of lectures and presentations to prepare new students to participate of the “Day in the Forest” ecological trail, of the acquisition and delivery of seedlings and of a research team from the Ministry of Agriculture inspecting forest experiments plots they have there with us since 2000.

Link 1: Slideshow of a student’s visit to Concordia Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary. You will also see some pictures of a group of bat researchers that come regularly to our area where they have found more than 30 different species of bats.

Link 2: In this TV video show you will see our deforested mountainous Atlantic Rainforest region during the dry and incendiary period, the Wildlife Sanctuary and a bit of my work. In Portuguese.

Link 3: Newspaper article with interview on agroforestry and organic agriculture. In Portuguese.

As you see, with your help, things are going well and we have great plans for the next years.

Please accept my sincere thanks.

Roberto Lamego

Links:

• "A Day in the Forest' ecotrail. Valenca city school visiting Ser
• TV Show. See our deforested region and my work. In Portuguese.
• Newspaper article on agroforestry and organic agriculture.