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This month, two of our amazing donors completed the bridge to bridge run in Arnhem, Netherlands, in aid of the BJF! Both dedicated supporters, this is one of many ways Hadassa and Tomas have contributed to the BJF!

As a Biologist from Brasília, Hadassa is passionate about the potential for our project to help restore the ecosystems of the Cerrado Savanna and Amazon and bring back water security to these areas!

When in balance, the earth’s ecosystems provide mankind with suitable living conditions such as clean air, fresh water and soil. In many cases these conditions provided by nature are taken for granted. For instance, the value of clean air and drinking water might not be taken into account as important factors when developing our societies and economies. In such cases, decisions are made leaving natural systems out of consideration.

In order to make the benefits that we receive from ecosystems measurable and link them with human activities, the concept of Ecosystem Services was developed. Ecosystem Services is a concept where natural services are given economic value/worth in order to bring these services into consideration when making decisions. Ecosystems services include for example, provision of food and raw materials, nutrient recycling and soil formation.

Naturally, water is also one important service provided by ecosystems. Ecosystems provide fresh water that is directly consumable by living beings. That is of course, of extreme importance for us as well, especially when considering that most of the water on our planet is sea water. Other water related ecosystem services are climate regulation, through humidity and temperature control amongst other things, and the provision of fish stocks.

Water related ecosystems services are not only linked to aquatic ecosystems but also to terrestrial ecosystems. For example, vegetation plays a key role in water retention and groundwater recharge, two important aspects of the water cycle. From this perspective, restoration projects, such as the Araguaia Corridor project, do not only contribute to increase/maintain terrestrial ecosystems services such as biodiversity and carbon sequestration, but also contribute – and are essential – to water related ecosystems services.

By Hadassa Moreira and Simon Holsteijn, IMD

What an example Lenn Keyhan Yonkers and his parents are setting! Lenn is a two year old boy who lives in the Netherlands. For his second birthday, Instead of receiving luxury toys,  his parents and loved ones collected money so that trees can be planted in his honor along the Araguaia Biodiversity Corridor. 

The BJF has provided a certificate to Lenn, pinpointing exactly where his trees will be planted. He will also receive update every 6 months about how his trees doing. When he turns 15 his parents intend to take him to the site of his then fully developed patch of forest!  Lenn and his parents are truly setting a great example. Their donation shows how young children can already have a positive impact on the environment!

Last July our forest engineer- Eduardo Oliveira – and our project coordinator – Dimitrio Schievenin – went on a roadshow throughout the Araguaia region. The goal of the roadshow was to spread the news about the BJF to new landowners, regional stakeholders, and public agencies. They had many meetings, including with the secretaries of environment of Marianópolis, Caseara and Santana do Araguaia, secretaries of agriculture of Caseara and Santana do Araguaia, members of rural syndicates and agencies of Tocantins State. There was great interest to learn more about the project and the advantages of ecological restoration from all of these entities.

It was impressive to see the commitment of public agencies to the environment- even in very small towns! Angela Barbosa, secretary of environment of Marianópolis, was very proud to partner with the BJF and promised an articulation with local landowners. Legislators of Caseara suggested schoolchildren visit BJF nursery for environmental education. The BJF really looks forward to help these municipalities in re-greening areas of their land. 

You can see the local newspaper article written about the BJF here

When we plant seedlings in our restoration site, we separate between fast-growing and diverse species. The role of fast-growing species is to build up the new forest structure and provide the ideal conditions for the more diverse species to then thrive.

The fast-growing species do not only grow fast but they also have a faster life cycle, this is why some of the seedlings we have planted in December have already come into fruition! So far this season Mutambo (Guazuma ulmifolia) and the Urucum (Bixa orellana) have been the stars of the show. This fruition is a crucial stage in the restoration process as once these trees attract fauna, these animals will not only feed in the restoration site, but they will also bring seeds of different species, making the new forest richer and healthier.

The Mutambo (Guazuma ulmifolia) tree

BJF Team Brazil- painting their faces with fruit from our very own trees!

Now that dry season has begun again in Brazil, our forest engineers are collecting and filling the nurseries with new seedlings, ready to plant when the rain comes again in November. In just the last few months we have filled the nurseries with 20,000 native tree seedlings. Another 20,000 are also on track to be prepared in the next 5 months. Our nursery is producing at full capacity. We have a total of 42 native species, of which 12 are fast growing, responsible for the initial structuring of the forest. The others will make up the biodiversity of the future ecosystem.

Each month, our technicians learn new facts about the species in the region. With the knowledge acquired, new species can be added to the production portfolio, increasing the biodiversity of our restoration sites.

Bioflora is the leading consulting firm for ecological restoration in Brazil. Together with the Laboratory of Ecology and Forest Restoration (LERF) of the University of São Paulo, they have been an invaluable technical partner for the BJF for the past two years, carrying out field visits on our sites and providing us with a wealth of expert knowledge about ecological restoration. We are immensely proud to announce that our partnership has now been extended for the coming two years. Top Bioflora and LERF scientists will continue to visit our sites every three months and work closely with our forest engineers. 

The partnership will allow us to evaluate seedling production in our nurseries in order to include new species in our production portfolio, increase productivity and improve seedling quality. Scientists will also visit and monitor our restoration areas so techniques and processes can be perfected.

This knowledge will increase our success rates in ecological restoration and will be applied to thousands of other rural properties.

Our new team member, Marina Tavares, is ready to keep building a bright future for the Black Jaguar Foundation! Marina is a “Goiana” who spent a great part of her childhood exploring the Araguaia River with her family. She has a very special connection with the area and so she is very dedicated to restoring it. After graduating at FGV Business School and working for years for the private sector, predominantly in marketing for large companies (such as Nestlé), she decided it was time to start giving back to the world. During her career shift, she had the opportunity to do a post-graduate course in Social Innovation Management at Amani Institute. This led her to start her own project, Dig In The Garden, which focuses on engaging teenagers with agroforestry and gardening. 

Marina is taking over from Francisco Macedo, who has been accepted to the MSc in Sustainable Forest and Nature Management. This is offered by the European Union with a full scholarship covering his entire tuition and living cost. It is a double degree program in which he will study one year at the University of Copenhagen and another year at the University of Padova, taking a summer course in a partner university and completing his thesis research in either Canada, Chile, South Africa or Australia. Francisco says he is  very grateful about this opportunity as he is convinced that the MSc will provide him with the right knowledge to better support the Black Jaguar Foundation on its mission to realise the Araguaia Biodiversity Corridor.

Innovation and Human relations are the main skills Marina will use to foster amazing partnerships for BJF in Brazil. We are very happy to have such an experienced new team member on board!