Skip to main content
DONATE
All Posts By

Ana Paula Mendes

Join us for our 2020 Celebration event!

By News Home

We are honoured to invite you to our 2020 Milestone Celebration Event!

This time, the event will take place in Genk, Belgium, at the extraordinary LABIOMISTAhome to the enigmatic artworks of BJF Ambassador, Koen Vanmechelen. We have been permitted unique access to the restricted wing of LABIOMISTA for this exclusive event.

Official invites will be sent shortly, however, as we can only receive a limited number of guests, kindly reserve the date in your agenda and confirm your attendance at your earliest convenience. 

Fortunately, there are many milestones to celebrate with you on Saturday the 18th of April, and as we are expanding our reforestation in the field, we need you more than ever in 2020! We can thrive only because of the support we receive from you: our generous and invested network of partners, sponsors and friends.

So, on top of celebrating our milestones together, this event is to celebrate you! 

We hope to see you in Genk next year! 

The BJF Team & Ambassador Koen Vanmechelen 

Make Christmas 2019 about the future.

By News Home

Make this Christmas about the future and give the most valuable gift. Give life…give trees! DONATE ANY AMOUNT, big or small, and come on this epic journey with us. For each € 5 of your donation, we will plant a native tree in your name!

For those of you who are already part of TheFirst600 campaign, now is the time to renew your partnership. 

Already 50.000 native trees are growing thanks to your support and the next goal is 1,5 million native trees!

What makes our mission unique? 

  • The BJF team manages every stage of the process, from fundraising to the planting and maintenance of your trees.
  • Partnerships are key. Everyone we work with becomes a valued partner. 
  • Creating positive, sustainable relationships with local landowners and communities is at the center of what we do.
  • Your trees will be maintained for 3 years after planting to ensure maximum survival rate.
  • Detailed scientific mapping and biodiversity planning ensure your trees restore the areas to their natural state.
  • The scale. With the aim to plant over 1.4 billion native trees, this will one of the largest reforestation project in South America….learn more 

Become part of something much bigger this festive season! Join one of the largest reforestation projects, planting native trees, on the planet, and help us restore the biodiversity of the Araguaia corridor, in the heart of Brazil. We are committed to changing the fate of our planet, are you? 

If your donation is a gift for someone else, we can address your BJF friend package to be sent directly to your loved ones.

Thank you for your support and we wish you a very green Christmas, 

The BJF Team

BJF lead panel at the Brazilian Conference on Climate Change

By News Home

The CBMC – Brazilian Conference on Climate Change – is an annual meeting, the first of which convened in early November this year, bringing together non-governmental organisations, social movements, governments, the scientific community and the Brazilian private and public sector for three days of dialogue and proposals surrounding the implementation of the Brazilian NDC, the Paris Agreement and the 2030 agenda. A landmark event representing the collective action taking place in Brazil to tackle climate change.

The Black Jaguar Foundation had the honour of being invited to participate in the event as a partner organisation. Marina Tavares (BJF) and Dimitrio Schievenin (BJF) lead the panel “Restoration and Recovering of Degraded Areas: Commitments and Opportunities for Brazil”, together with Severino Ribeiro (CEPAN and Atlantic Forest Restoration Pact) and Jeferson Straatmann (ISA – Socio-Environmental Institute). Our project coordinator, Dimitrio Schievenin, was also invited to the WWF panel, “Barriers and Opportunities for NDC Implementation in the Farming Sector – A Focus on Restoring Degraded Areas in the Brazilian Cerrado.”. Here we shared the learnings so far from our pilot project in Santana do Araguaia (PA) and Caseara (TO), an area viewed to be the transition point between the Cerrado and Amazon biomes.

The outcome of this conference was the Recife Declaration. The Black Jaguar Foundation are one of numerous institutions, NGOs, companies and public agencies that have signed this agreement, committing to stand against climate change and work collectively towards a greener, more sustainable future. With our mission to restore more than 1 million hectares of the Amazon and Brazilian Cerrado along the Araguaia River, we are very proud to contribute directly to the Brazilian restoration target of 12 million hectares by 2030, the figure agreed upon in the Paris Agreement.

 

You too can show your support for climate action in Brazil and sign the Recife Declaration https://www.climabrasil.org.br/assinatura

BJF Demonstration unit open for environmental education

By News Home

During the current rainy season, the BJF field team is implementing a Restoration Demonstration Unit (RDU), located in the Farm of the Future, in the heart of the Araguaia Biodiversity Corridor! Our team first prepared the area for restoration by removing all invasive grasses and plants, placing a fence and starting to plant the first seedlings. This RDU will be fully restored using three different techniques: seedling planting, with legume plants between the seedlings; dense seedling planting; and direct seeding, mixing tree species and legume plants.

The aim is for this 1,3 hectare restoration site to become a reference for other landowners that wish to partner with the BJF to restore their land, allowing them to see the process in action. The RDU will also be used as a site for local environmental education! When the restoration process is complete, pathways and sign boards will be created within the RDU, so people can walk around, explore and find out more information about ecological restoration. Local schools will also visit the site so children can come and learn more about the environment and why we need to restore and maintain these important areas. 

The BJF Team along with researchers from the Green Capital Study, visiting the Restoration Demonstration Unit (RDU), November 2019.

BJF Governance project begins!

By News Home

This year has seen many exciting developments which have propelled us into the next stages of our project, and as we grow, so must our structures. The BJF is therefore proud to have been awarded a Corporate Governance project by Vieira Rezende, a renowned Brazilian law firm. 

Vieira Rezende’s talented attorneys are currently working pro-bono in order to help us create compliance policies and set up a Brazilian advisory board. This board will be formed from renowned professionals from finance, forest restoration, third sector, impact business, environmental legislation and Agribusiness to help guide us in our future endeavours. The Brazilian Corporate Governance project will help bring even more transparency and trust to our partners and donors, as well as being a fundamental step towards broadening our Brazilian community! This is a crucial next step in the development of the BJF, helping to prepare us for the next, exciting phases of our immense task. 

Greenfinity Foundation gets involved

By News Home

We are excited to announce our new partnership with Greenfinity Foundation. From Austria, this charitable organisation is committed to the protection of the environment, actively supporting initiatives that promote awareness and secure the preservation of natural habitats. Looking to promote innovation in the face of climate change and environmental degradation, the range of projects Greenfinity support is extensive, however they are all deeply rooted in mutual social and environmental development.

At the Black Jaguar Foundation we look to partner with organisations whose outlook aligns with our own, Greenfinity share our optimism and vision of working together for a greener future, their motto: “Together for our world. A future together.” Their ultimate goal is to create a world in which practices for the conservation, protection and restoration of our environment become a natural part of everyday life.

As one of Greenfinity’s chosen organisations, the Black Jaguar Foundation is extremely honoured to be working with this new partner and receive support that will be vital in the next stages of our project. The funding provided by Greenfinity will be used directly by our BJF Brazil Team to implement our second pilot phase, the planting of 1 million trees, part of which will become the Greenfinity forest!

As 2019 comes to a close and planting season commences in Brazil, we want to thank Greenfinity Foundation for the important role they have played in the planting of this next, much larger quantity of trees and we look forward to working with them in the coming year.

Read more about how Greenfinity Foundation support the BJF here.

Aufforstungsprojekt Greenfinity Forest zur Rettung des Amazonas-Regenwaldes

Die Abholzung der Regenwälder hat erschreckende Ausmaße angenommen: Etwa 60.000 Quadratkilometer der tropischen Regenwälder werden jährlich zerstört. Damit schwinden auch unsere CO2-Speicher, was die globale Erwärmung vorantreibt. Zusammen mit der Black Jaguar Foundation hat die Greenfinity Foundation ein Aufforstungsprojekt in Brasilien gestartet, das helfen soll, einen Teil des CO2-Ausstoßs zu kompensieren.

BJF heroes: Floris and Natascha Wouterson

By News Home

Once again the support we receive from our loyal army of partners, donors and friends is inspiring! This month we want to put the spotlight on Floris and Natascha Wouterson who have been with us since the start of our journey. On top of being committed sponsors themselves, they have also been planting fundraising seeds for us for many years now, spreading the story and the mission of the Black Jaguar Foundation far and wide. Thanks to these efforts the BJF now has an amazing community of German sponsors, to whom we also would like to thank for coming on this exciting journey with us! 

As the owners of Sleepwise, Floris and Natascha have their own mission, to help people sleep better. Since the success of their two stores, Floris has delved further into the world of sleep, becoming the first sleep performance coach in Europe. In this role he provides, coaching and techniques on how to maximise your sleep and has now published the book, ‘Super Sleeper’, containing everything you need to know to rest well. Helping the world one nights sleep at a time. 

After learning of our project in 2012, there was no hesitation, they would support us. The Wouterson family are true believers in what we are trying to achieve, in a recent update meeting Floris said ‘we are a team, I am just one small part’, a mentality we share! With each team member, sponsor, partner playing their respective role, we are capable of truly changing our planets prognosis. 

Thank you Floris and Natascha for all your energy, your inspiring drive and your dedication!

Watch their video testimonial to discover why they support the BJF!

The BJF makes environmental education a priority

By News Home

Our project has developed only by building strong relationship with local communities, which has recently been extended through the engagement with local schools and universities.

This month, one of our forest engineers, Carlos Eduardo, visited a school in the Araguaia corridor region to teach about the intrinsic value of nature and the reasons why we must all protect our planet’s biodiversity!

This is part of a new initiative with the Secretary of Environment, Fisheries and Tourism of Marianópolis do Tocantins to promote social and environmental sustainability in the region. The BJF is extremely happy to be part of this vital work, sharing our knowledge about restoration with the next generation and in turn gaining more of an understanding about the needs of these communities. 

The BJF also received students from the University of Goiás to learn about the restoration process and experience the life of a forest engineer, first hand from our BJF Field Coordinator.

Maria Paula Ataídes, Forest Engineering student and member of the Cerrado Fruit Study Group at the Federal University of Goiás.

Ana Carolina Alves Serafim, Forest Engineering student and member of the Cerrado Fruit Study Group at the Federal University of Goiás.

During the field, they followed various activities under the supervision of Field Coordinator Carlos Eduardo Batista de Oliveira: collecting and processing forest seeds, the production of forest seedlings in the nursery, monitoring the areas planted in 2018 and looking at the next steps and the new areas where restoration will be implemented. Here’s what they said about their experience:

I returned even more with the certainty that Forest Engineering is the wonderful profession I want to pursue, and the certainty that the BJF Araguaia Biodiversity Corridor project is one of the most beautiful actions in terms of the environment and ecological restoration’ – Maria Paula Ataídes.

It was a week of hard learning and hard work, but nothing compares to the feeling of witnessing how restoration happens.’ – Ana Carolina Alves Serafim

Meet Elyakin and Phablo!

By News Home

Conheça Elyakin e Phablo, nossos mais novos membros da equipe! Como engenheiros ambientais locais, Elaykin e Phablo desempenharão um papel crucial nas próximas etapas do nosso projeto, ajudando a comunicar nossa missão e a criar novas parcerias com proprietários de terras ao longo do Corredor do Araguaia.

Elyakin e Phablo são locais na região e têm extensas trajetórias na agricultura! Esse conhecimento íntimo da área, das pessoas e da indústria faz com que Elyakin e Phablo estejam perfeitamente posicionados para exaltar aos proprietários os méritos de se comprometerem com o nosso projeto de biodiversidade e nos permitir transformar suas terras nas áreas ricas e diversas que antes eram!

Vemos nossas parcerias com os proprietários de terras como uma vitória para todos! Não apenas garantindo o cumprimento das leis brasileiras, nosso trabalho deixará os proprietários de terras com uma qualidade do solo mais rica e um abastecimento de água superior, além de aumentar a sustentabilidade de suas fazendas e ganhar créditos de CO2 no processo. Sem mencionar o orgulho e o reconhecimento associados a ajudar a preservar nosso planeta!

Esse projeto requer uma enorme comunidade de parceiros e, portanto, estamos extremamente empolgados em ter Elyakin e Phablo a bordo, nos ajudando a aumentar nosso alcance e atingir o próximo objetivo concreto – 1 milhão de árvores!

Como dono de sua própria empresa de consultoria ambiental, Licenciar, Elyakin possui um vasto conhecimento e experiência em torno da restauração desse ambiente específico. Além disso, estar ciente das necessidades das comunidades do corredor de Araguaia garantirá que, à medida que avançamos, continuamos a fazê-lo em parceria com esses atores locais.

How does restoration work? Method 1: planting seedlings

By News Home

The planting of seedlings is crucial, especially when natural regeneration is not able to express itself. The process required for this is complex, from the careful preparation of the soil, to the control of competing plants, to the planting of species with different functional attributes.

When restoring forests, fast-growing trees are planted first. These have the task of re-building the structure and changing the microclimate and soil conditions, making way for the diversity species.

Fast-growing trees must have certain attributes, such as a dense crown, strong roots and an association with beneficial micro-organisms that will help maintain the plants and richness of the soil. Diversity species are longer living and will be part of the future structure when the forest matures. In Savannas, there is no division between fast-growing and diversity. Instead, trees, bushes and grasses are planted all at once to rebuild structure and biodiversity.

This technique requires constant maintenance and monitoring, but it will successfully restore the biodiversity of a given site.