Posts Tagged ‘sustainable livelihoods’

ecoReserve and the Mamoni Valley

Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010

In advance of the launch of our new model we wanted to introduce The Mamoni Valley (the site of our first reserves), why it is significant, the ecoReserve model and our ecological strategic contribution in the Valley.

The Mamoni Valley

The Mamoni Valley is located in narrowest portion of the North American continent (central Panama), which separates the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The 28000 acre Valley is part of a world recognized biodiversity hotspot and home to a diverse range of plants and animals. In addition, it is an important migration stop-over region for many North and South American birds.

For the past forty years, large areas of the valley have been deforested due to increased demands for agriculture and ranching production. Currently, the Mamoní Valley is severely fragmented and degraded which threatens the watershed and biodiversity.

What is biodiversity?

Biological diversity means the diversity, or variety, of plants and animals and other living things in a particular area or region. For instance, the species that inhabit Los Angeles are different from those in San Francisco, and desert plants and animals have different characteristics and needs than those in the mountains, even though some of the same species can be found in all of those areas. Biodiversity also means the number, or abundance of different species living within a particular region.

Physical Characteristics of the Mamoni Valley and Why It Is Significant

Part of Mesoamerican Biological Corridor: The Mesoamerican Biological Corridor is a large habitat corridor in Mesoamerica, stretching from Mexico southeastward through most of Central America, connecting several national parks. It was started in 1998 to keep critically endangered species from going extinct.

Part of Mesoamerica Biodiversity Hotspot: A biodiversity hotspot is a biogeographic region that is both a significant reservoir of biodiversity and is threatened with destruction. The Mesoamerican forests are the third largest among the world’s hotspots. Spanning most of Central America, the Mesoamerica Hotspot encompasses all subtropical and tropical ecosystems from central Mexico to the Panama Canal. This includes all of Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, as well as a third of Mexico and nearly two-thirds of Panama.

Borders Kuna Yala (land of indigenous Kuna): Kuna Yala is an autonomous territory or comarca in Panama, inhabited by the Kuna indigenous people. The name means “Kuna-land” or “Kuna mountain” in the Kuna language

Borders Chagres National Park: Chagres National Park was established in 1985. The Chagres National Park covers 129,000 hectares and is 40 kilometers from Panama City.

About ecoReserve and The Model

ecoReserve has developed a new model to address the negative social, economic and environmental influences impacting the Mamoní Valley. The model includes three types of reserves, conservation, reforestation and sustainable livelihoods. These reserves will successfully build a multi-faceted, ecological restoration program that increases the health of the rainforest and improves the livelihoods of the people who depend upon the land.

Our ecological strategic contribution by establishing the reserves in the Mamoni Valley:
– Create buffer zone for Kuna Yala and Chagres National Park
– Strengthen biological corridor
– Protect biodiversity and animal habitats

Coming up in upcoming blogs:
Mesoamerican Biological Corridor
Mesoamerican Biodiversity Hotspot
Kuna Yala (land of indigenous Kuna)
Chagres National Park

ecoReserve Does First Trade Show at SF Green Festival!

Wednesday, April 14th, 2010

We just finished up a great weekend with ecoReserve doing its first trade show at the SF Green Festival.

At Green Festival™, a joint project of Global Exchange and Green America, attendees were  celebrating what’s working in our communities—for people, business and the environment.

Think of Green Festival™ as a walk through a sustainable community. It begins with finding solutions to help make our lives healthier—socially, economically and environmentally. Individuals along with business and community leaders come together to discuss critical issues that impact us at home and abroad. Organizations and businesses showcase programs and products that restore the planet and all that inhabit it. Neighbor-to-neighbor connections are formed, and skills are shared to empower people to create positive change in the world.

We were pleased to have a booth at the nation’s premier sustainability event, where we were a part of  the best in green. This included more than 125 renowned authors, leaders and educators; great how-to workshops; cutting-edge films; fun activities for kids; organic beer and wine; delicious vegetarian cuisine and diverse live music along with a unique marketplace of more than 350 eco-friendly businesses—everything from all-natural body care products and organic cotton clothing to Fair Trade gifts and beautiful kitchen tiles made from renewable resources.

It was a busy two days with a lot of excitement about the Festival and about us. It was the first time we publicly talked about ecoReserve. We showcased our product that will help to restore the planet and all that inhabit it in the form of nature reserves. We formed neighbor-to-neighbor connections and shared our message about micro-conservation and how it empowers people to create positive change in the world.

We had a constant stream of people visiting us in our booth. We shared the concept of micro-conservation and how people could make a difference by adopting their own nature reserve for as little as $25. We were met with a lot of positive responses.

Our booth really stood out as unique – it was designed it to look like a living-room size nature reserve, which drew a lot of attention. Our jungle at the Green Festival.

Main draws to our booth: 1) the jungle look in general, 2) the creative moss covered computer monitors. We had a slide show of scenes from the reserve, and last but certainly not least, 3) a constant supply of cookies.

There were people who said they loved the concept of micro-conservation.

We got a lot of people who said they were about to have a birthday and would like to ask their friends to buy them ER parcels. Other people said they had multiple nieces/nephews who would like a reserve as a present. We are building this functionality in our 1st release of the product. Our CTO Jim Lynch will announce it later this week.

All in all, it was a wonderful experience for ecoReserve and if the response received at the Green Festival is any indicator of things to come in the future we are excited as we believe that micro-conservation is going to be an exciting new concept in land conservation that people will view as exciting and game-changing.