DUO
Ambiental
Community Work
A considerable amount of our work is done in small communities, some of them quite remote. While working in communities we make sure to live in the community for a while so both the community members and ourselves get to know each other on the personal level.
Our challenge is to encourage nature conservation that will be promoted and managed by the community itself, in such a manner that benefit both nature and the real needs of the community.
Few examples from our work:
Angola
In Angola we were living and working in rural communities to train locals to become birdwatching guides. Part of our work was to motivate the communities to protect the endangered birds and their habitats, in order to be able to receive birdwatching tourists. Three of the communities in which we worked with challenging conservation issues - Kinjila, Santa Amboleia and Tundavala, defined "important areas for birdwatching tourism" in which the forest and the birds would be protected, to ensure the protection of birds that are important to attract birdwatching tourists. This was done in collaboration with the guides we trained and through several meetings with the elders of the communities who gradually became convinced in the potential of the birdwatching tourism to generate additional important revenues to their communities.
Kinjila, Angola- Community protects the endangered White-headed Robin Chat
The Birds of Tundavala, Angola
Santa Amboleia, Angola- Community & Birds dance Jerusalema
Kinjila, Angola- Community protects the endangered White-headed Robin Chat
The Birds of Tundavala, Angola
Santa Amboleia, Angola- Community & Birds dance Jerusalema
Talamajamba, Angola- Natural & Cultural Diversity
Community work in Angola
Nicaragua
In Nicaragua we created in cooperation with the USAID the "Guardianes del Bosque" (protectors of the forest) project, in which SONATI (the NGO we created and managed) provided support and training for communities that took actions to protect the nature around them:
Santa Rosa community: Creating a community nature reserve - "Reserva Los Madroños" that protects the tropical dry forest and the almost endemic Nicaraguan Spiny-tailed Iguana. The work included explaining about the importance of this forest, motivate the community to donate the land for conservation, develop rural ecotourism, promote benefits for the school children and the whole community. This community was declared as an "example community" by the Nicaraguan ministry of the environment.
Salinas Grandes community: Creating and carrying out environmental education programs and achieving funds to support the already existing sea-turtle community conservation project.
La Garnacha community: Training natural history guides and providing them guiding materials and equipment, promoting the protection of the Tisey-La Estanzuela reserve. Carrying out environmental education programs.
Colocondo community: Opening a new touristic destination - the Colocondo Waterfall, and working with the community to protect the well-preserved forest around the waterfall. Training natural history & trekking guides and providing them guiding materials and equipment. Carrying out environmental education programs and providing solar energy for the school.
La Playa community: Training local trekking guides to work with tourists, carrying out environmental education programs and promoting the conservation of the forests around the Somoto Canyon.
Bartola community: Training local natural history guides and promoting the protection of the nature around the community and the Indio Maiz reserve.
Community work in Nicaragua
Costa Rica
In Costa Rica we established and carried out environmental education programs in rural communities near protected areas, in cooperation with SINAC (the state nature conservation agency). We had special focus on the communities near the Maquenque Reserve and the Arenal Volcano National Park.
Peru
In Peru we established and carried out environmental education programs in rural communities near protected areas, in cooperation with various organizations and state institutions. We had special focus on the communities near the reserves of Allpahuayo Mishana, Pomac Forest and non protected forests around Moyobamba. In addition we carried our various outdoor environmental festivals to raise awareness to the importance of several protected areas as well as to the conservation of two endangered bird species: The Iquitos Gnatcatcher (in the Allpahuayo Mishana reserve) and the Peruvian Plantcutter (in the Pomac Forest).
We also carried out a short project in the community of Cocachimba: Implementing a project in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism of Peru to promote tourism and nature conservation in the Gocta Waterfalls. We trained local community members to become natural history and trekking guides, and promoted the conservation of the nature around the community and the waterfalls.
