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Friends and colleagues,

This month highlights our regional work in the Governance practice. Within the framework of the Indigenous Amazon, Rights and Resources project, WWF-Peru created EGIDA, the first Indigenous Governance School for Amazonian Development in the country.

It also marks the crucial moment we are living in and our role is to continue urging decision makers to increase their political ambition at COP26 and during the following months.

In Oceans, WWF was part of the first regional Ocean Expedition in Guyana and Suriname, in which the Gervais beaked whale species was documented for the first time in Suriname.

With regards to Food, WWF-Paraguay participated in an event of the Alliance for Sustainable Development that seeks to promote the adoption of good livestock practices.

For the Freshwater practice, WWF-Bolivia made an urgent call for joint action to reduce plastic pollution in lakes and rivers.

In the Markets practice, Colombia has a new protected areas policy thanks to the support of WWF-Colombia, who in coordination with WWF-UK, US, Germany and Holland, had mobilized approximately 200 million dollars to seek the permanence of protected areas in the country.

In our Education work, the WWF-Fundación Telmex Telcel Alliance received a prize for its Aventúra-T podcast which was produced to bring people closer to nature.

Finally, in the Climate and Energy practice, Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina held its annual event "Yurumí" in which the approach of young people to the environment was discussed, among other environmental issues. In the same line, WWF-Chile reviewed the achievements of its forest restoration project in Nahuelbuta, as a prominent experience against climate change and forest fires.

Enjoy this new edition,

Roberto Troya

Vice president & Regional Director

WWF-LAC

The first regional Guianas’ Ocean Expedition is a big success 

WWF-Guianas and partners completed their first regional Ocean Expedition in Guyana and Suriname in September - October. The purpose of the expedition was to establish a baseline of large marine wildlife within the Exclusive Economic Zones of the two countries. During the expedition, WWF staff and experts observed several rarely seen species. The most notable success were the first pictures taken of a Gervais’ beaked whale in Suriname, which is now officially a new species in this country.

Marine Spatial Plan
The project, which ends this month, is expected to propel the Guianas towards in a Marine Spatial Plan for improved marine protection. This is urgent in the Guianas, where the ocean will change considerably in the coming decades due to the impacts of climate change, such as sea-level rise, and will cause sea life to come under increasing pressure. The Guianas are considered as one of the most prospective oil basins in the world and fisheries are an important economic sector, but still largely unsustainable.

The first school for indigenous governance in the Peruvian Amazon

Understanding that education is a key piece of development, WWF, AIDESEP, and USAID worked together in the framework of Indigenous Amazon Rights and Resources project, to develop EGIDA, the first Indigenous Governance School for Amazon Development in Peru, which will seek to strengthen leadership capacities, good governance, political communication and strategic negotiation. They created a study plan to reflect the culture and language of the students to decrease inequality and prevent discrimination in a more equitable educational environment. They hope this program opens doors to more opportunities for community members in the Peruvian Amazon.

Alliance for Sustainable Development promotes the adoption of good livestock practices

Alliance Night gave farmers a chance to share success stories and experiences on more sustainable production practices in Paraguay, under the umbrella of the Alliance for Sustainable Development with the support of USAID/Paraguay. This activity took place in person and virtually on Tuesday, October 19, 2021. The event was attended by the Chargé d'Affaires of the U.S. Embassy; the Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, the President of the National Forestry Institute, the Director of Strategic Planning of the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development and the Director of WWF-Paraguay. Also, other members and partners of the Alliance, representatives of the diplomatic corps, as well as representatives of production, finance and civil society organizations, among others, took part on the event.

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WWF- Bolivia made an urgent call for joint actions to reduce plastic pollution.

It is estimated that greenhouse gas emissions from the life cycle of plastic will represent up to 20% of the entire global carbon budget by 2040, which will accelerate the climate crisis.

WWF-Bolivia, in the framework of the project "Urban Solutions with Citizen Action" financed by the Swedish Embassy in Bolivia, launched the campaign "Together without Plastics". The campaign’s objective is calling on different sectors to take urgent actions to reduce plastic pollution in Bolivia’s lakes and rivers.

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Colombia reaches a new Protected Areas policy

Colombia has effectively established a new Protected Areas (PA) policy that seeks to achieve transformative changes to conserve the natural and cultural heritage, as well as reverse the trend of extinction or loss of species and incorporate ecosystems that are not protected within the National System of Protected Areas. Its execution will be possible to a large extent thanks to Heritage Colombia, a program that seeks to guarantee the benefits that protected areas generate and strengthen territorial governance through the long-term financing of 20 million hectares of PAs and conservation landscapes. WWF participated in the formulation of the policy as executor of the GEF SINAP project (supported by the IDB), and was one of the main promoters of Heritage Colombia among other allies. In coordination with WWF-UK, US, Germany and the Netherlands, and with the support of donors and cooperation agencies, WWF-Colombia is mobilizing approximately 200 million dollars for this initiative.

WWF production wins at 2021 Latin Podcast Awards

The WWF-Fundación TELMEX Telcel Alliance won “Best non-profit podcast 2021” for Aventúra-T at the Latin Podcast Awards on October 16. The podcast was recognized for bringing its listeners closer to nature, the species that inhabit it, their threats and the work that experts carry out to conserve them. Aventúra-T includes three episodes, in which the audience can immerse themselves with the audio and their imagination in the depths of the Calakmul jungle, to meet the jaguar; at the bottom of the Sea of Cortez, along with sharks, sea turtles and whales; and also in the Monarch butterfly forest.

Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina held its annual “Yurumí” event

The iconic annual event of Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina was held in-person. Yurumí 2021: talks with our feet on the Earth, addressed different topics such as: loss of nature, productive systems and business models, the approach of young people to the environment, proposals from political parties in an election year, solutions and challenges, among others. The recording of the event is available below:

Forest restoration in Nahuelbuta: A key experience in the fight against climate change and forest fires

In the midst of a unique nature wealth, a forest restoration project has been developed in Nahuelbuta since 2019, funded by the European Union and with WWF-Chile as one of its participants. Among the achievements of the initiative there is the formation of an unprecedented Nahuelbuta Mountain Range Restoration Advisory Council, made up of representatives of public and private entities and communities in the territory. Also, it highlights the work of gathering detailed and updated information on the restoration initiatives that are carried out in the territory, through a geoportal, as well as the edition of the Guide for Monitoring the Forests Restoration at the Site Scale, the first publication of its kind in Chile.