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© Stefany Olaya WWF
It is sometimes difficult to understand how WWF leads processes in the Amazon. Having the opportunity to interact with people, navigate rivers, see species, walk paths in the forest or witness how deforestation progresses, surely makes the difference in our work.
Representatives from WWF UK and WWF Germany could personally confirm this during their visit to Colombia in November, where they learned about the processes and achievements of the Northern Amazon Program. The German team was composed by Christoph Heinrich, Director of Conservation; Jörg-Andreas Krüger, Chief Conservation Officer and Tania Roach, Marketing and Fundraising Executive Officer. This team, accompanied by members from WWF Colombia, traveled through the Orinoquia-Amazonia transition zone. Days later, Tanya Steele, Chief Executive of WWF-UK, visited the Andean-Amazon piedmont.
What did they found?
The field trip with WWF Germany’s team included a visit to farms where sustainable livestock processes and sustainable production chains are being carried out. They could realize the huge challenge of the land use planning and low carbon development for agriculture sector in this region. The German team also visited the Serrania de la Macarena National Park and had the opportunity to fly over the Chiribiquete National Natural Park. These two natural treasures, key for Amazon connectivity, are under threat due to intense deforestation processes.
According to official sources, in 2016, 178 thousand hectares were deforested in Colombia, and almost 70% of it occurred in the Amazon. For that reason, processes such as forest monitoring and expansion of protected areas, developed by WWF, are fundamental to mitigate these threats.
Tanya Steele's trip through the Amazon Piedmont included visits to sustainable farms under restoration where different municipalities are promoting sustainable livestock as an alternative livelihood. She also visited the Putumayo River, main tributary of the Amazon River, to understand the river dynamics and WWF’s work from a basin management perspective.
During this fieldtrip, the Chief Executive of WWF-UK could also witness the new road infrastructure that connects the Andes with Amazon, a building process that includes environmental parameters thanks to WWF’s work. She also visited the site where the tragic Mocoa Landslide occurred earlier this year. WWF is promoting an environmental land use planning to avoid disasters such as this one in the Amazon.
These are some of the best images of the fieldtrip:

© Stefany Olaya WWF

© Stefany Olaya WWF

© Stefany Olaya WWF

© Stefany Olaya WWF