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Friends and colleagues,

Our broken relationship with nature has created an alarming imbalance. Building a healthy future and preventing potential crises will depend on our efforts to rebuild this bond. Let’s make it possible to live in a world where humanity lives in harmony with nature. Here are this month's regional achievements and events:

In Governance, WWF-Latin America & the Caribbean, through coordinated efforts led by WWF-Colombia, launched the campaign Healthy Planet, Healthy People which includes an appeal for nature directed to Latin American governments.

In the Oceans practice, WWF-Ecuador called for conservation without maritime borders and recommended solutions to national authorities regarding the presence of a large foreign fishing fleet near the Galapagos Marine Reserve. In addition, in the same country, artisanal fishing for pomade shrimp with purse nets in the Gulf of Guayaquil was officially recognized by national authorities. Further, WWF-Mexico collaborated in identifying new opportunities for the country’s sustainable fishing market. In Chile, the national government began implementing Electronic Fishing Logbooks, a system developed by WWF to improve control and availability of data.

With regards to Freshwater, thanks to the support from WWF-Mesoamerica, two communities in Honduras were provided with access to water, which will be crucial in helping prevent the spread of COVID-19.

In work related to Forests, the Madre de Dios region in the Peruvian Amazon announced guidelines for sustainable livestock farming in alliance with the Ministry of Agriculture. Meanwhile, WWF-Paraguay and a partnered organization carried out a "Virtual Trip to the National Parks." On its behalf, Fundación Vida Silvestre, together with other institutions, presented a report on the implementation of the Native Forest Law in Argentina.

Lastly, in Climate and Energy, WWF-Bolivia announced that the recommendations for the energy transition, prepared with the participation of at least 70 institutions, will be delivered to the National Government.

Enjoy this new edition,

Roberto Troya

Vice president & Regional Director

WWF-LAC

‘Healthy Planet, Healthy People’ rethinks our relationship with nature

With the release of the report “COVID 19: An Urgent Call to Protect People and Nature,” WWF-Latin America & the Caribbean launched the 'Healthy Planet, Healthy People' campaign, coordinated by WWF-Colombia. The initiative aims to raise awareness about the need to change our relationship with nature and call on governments to act. In the first phase of this campaign, citizens can turn to their governments and ask them for concrete actions that allow them to change course, as well as avoid the risks of eventual pandemics. The campaign also draws the connection between the health of people, animals and our shared environment.

WWF-Ecuador calls for conservation efforts that aren't only limited to the sidelines of the maritime boundaries

Faced with the latent and recurring threat posed by the presence of foreign fishing fleets in the vicinity of the Galapagos Marine Reserve, WWF-Ecuador calls for conservation not on the sidelines of the maritime boundaries.

Marine species do not know borders and when they are following their migration routes, they cross international waters outside national jurisdictions, where there are no clear management policies and insufficient control of fishing activities. These areas then become prime spaces for illicit activities such as illegal fishing and piracy. WWF-Ecuador proposes several solutions and calls on national authorities to take urgent measures in the short, medium and long term, from various fronts and at different levels.

"Bolseros" from the Gulf of Guayaquil now have a Fishing Regulation

Pomada shrimp fishers, called "bolseros", have fished at a small scale for more than 50 years in the Gulf of Guayaquil. Now, through a Ministerial Agreement, its fishery was officially recognized and formalized, allowing it to continue strengthening the good management, governance and sustainable use of Ecuador's fishery resources.

WWF-Ecuador has worked closely with actors and national fishing authorities to develop pilot projects and test management schemes, as well as contributing to the preparation of a National Action Plan for the conservation and sustainable management of the entire "pomada fishery."

WWF identifies sustainable fishing opportunities in Mexico after new trade agreement

WWF-Mexico, along with the northwest división of the Pronatura conservation organization and Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SF), recently released and presented “Sustainable Fisheries in Mexico: diagnosis and opportunities for improvement.” This study is a comparative analysis of the performance of 33 Mexican fisheries that have been evaluated or pre-evaluated using the international standard of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC).

Chile adopts electronic fishing logbook app developed by WWF

The difficulty to obtain accurate counts of daily fish catches, as well as other relevant data, is an obstacle for productive and sustainable fishing activity, but technology is helping to break down these barriers.

WWF has developed an Electronic Fishing Logbook app, which is being adopted by countries in the Southern Cone such as Ecuador and Chile. The electronic logging application allows fishermen to report their catch data and help fisheries managers to better monitor the activity of fishing vessels, as well as tracking the origin of the products. A collaboration agreement was recently signed between WWF-Chile and the National Fisheries Service (Sernapesca), through which the NGO donated this tool for use in multiple fisheries.

Two communities in Honduras now have access to water to help prevent the spread of COVID-19

The Laguna de Bañaderos and Santa Elena communities in the Manchaguala sub-basin at the Merendon Reserve Zone in Northern Honduras now have access to water. The main problem that these communities faced was not related to water availability in the area, but rather a lack of adequate distribution infrastructure to have drinking water in their homes. The implementation of the project was coordinated by WWF-Mesoamerica, with the technical support of a specialized civil engineering firm.

Madre de Dios announces sustainable livestock guidelines in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture

The Peruvian Amazon is home to nearly 95% of the country's forests, but has an average annual loss of more than 125,000 hectares. This represents the largest contribution to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, in one of the countries with the highest risk of extreme weather events. For this reason, the Government and civil society, with the participation of the Livestock Technical Table, will support a review of the guidelines for sustainable livestock proposed in Madre de Dios, in addition to facilitating its escalation to the whole of the Peruvian Amazon within the framework of the Coalition for Sustainable Production.

Virtual Trip to Paraguay’s National Parks

A virtual trip was carried out through 7 national parks of the country through narrative audiovisuals to celebrate Paraguay’s National Parks Day. At the end of the tour, participants received a virtual passport with the stamps of each park visited.

This was organized by the Paraguayan Organization for Conservation and Sustainable Development and WWF-Paraguay, with support of the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development. The objective was to make visible the urgent need to conserve our natural resources and to highlight the work of the park rangers. It had a range of 50,000 views.

New report on the implementation of the Argentine Native Forests Law

Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina, together with Environment and Natural Resources Foundation, launched a report on the Native Forests Law. It highlights that almost 13 years after the approval, its implementation remains partial. The “Updated diagnosis of the implementation status on Law No. 26,331” shows holes, gaps, barriers and bottlenecks, identifying the progress and existing tools, as well as recommendations and alternative solutions. The objective of the report is to establish a work schedule to promote improvement in the implementation of the law.

Recommendations for the energy transition will be delivered to the Bolivian National Government

Representatives from at least 70 organizations prepared a series of recommendations for the energy transition in Bolivia. The experts analyzed the current energy situation and its projection to 2050 in a “Business as usual” scenario and an “IPCC” scenario of total decarbonisation of the sector. Among the recommendations, it highlights the urgency of generating a roadmap for the transition, with a focus on massive social participation. This will only be possible in a scenario with new generations that are aware of environmental problems and a private sector that is aware of the economic challenge that this transition represents for the State in terms of investments.