Friends and colleagues,
“Together possible” is more than a slogan, it refers to the importance and impact of working together. November was a month I which several local and regional initiatives were developed, demonstrating that cooperation across the region can achieve great results.
In Wildlife, WWF launched a regional jaguar protection plan that will cover 15 priority landscapes in 14 Latin American countries.
Regarding Oceans, WWF spoke against harmful fishing subsidies and called for supporting good fishing. On the other hand, WWF-Ecuador announced an initiative that aims to implement a sustainable fishing commercialization model through digital transformation in the city of Puerto López. Also, based on the report “Stop Ghost Gear”, WWF-Peru led a regional campaign to bring awareness about the impact that lost or abandoned fishing nets have on the oceans, and it called for action on this issue. Lastly, Fundación Vida Silvestre presented a campaign about the problem of the illegal discarding of hake in the Argentine sea.
In work related to Forests, WWF-Brazil, WWF-Paraguay and WWF-Bolivia, launched an international photography exhibition entitled “Pantanal: Life, Death and Renaissance” about the largest wetland in the planet, on Pantanal Day. On the other hand, the WWF-Telmex Telcel Foundation Alliance launched its book on the annual Monarch butterfly migration, which spans three North American countries and culminates in the forests of Central Mexico.
With respect to the Climate & Energy Practice, the Chilean NDC update was presented by WWF at the London Climate Action Week.
As the highlight of our Governance Practice, Generación 10, the regional initiative of youth for the planet, launched its first challenge that seeks one million actions for a healthy planet.
Finally, concerning Markets, the Interinstitutional Platform for the Articulation of Productive Complexes of Amazon Fruits (PICFA in Spanish), was organized as a space for public-private coordination.
Enjoy this new edition,
Roberto Troya
Vice president & Regional Director
WWF launches regional jaguar protection plan in Latin America
WWF announced the Jaguar Conservation Strategy that establishes a continental network of 15 priority landscapes across 14 countries in the Americas, with the primary objective of guaranteeing the recovery of this feline, a "near threatened" species according to the IUCN, due to the loss of its habitats and poaching, among other causes. The regional strategy, which is led by WWF-Mexico, promotes sustainable economic activities, such as agroforestry and community reforestation, for the benefit of human populations that coexist with the feline.
Let’s support good fishing: WWF speaks out against harmful fishing subsidies
WWF launched the campaign “Let’s support good fishing”, which calls for a global reform of the grants that promote the overexploitation of fishery resources and marine ecosystems. Around $22 billion dollars globally go into harmful subsidies each year, while 94% of fish stocks are fully exploited or overexploited. The campaign, which was propelled by WWF-Mexico, was announced while the 164 member countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) seek a possible agreement that abolishes these subventions. The Pew Charitable Trusts (Pew) and the Inter-American Association for the Defense of the Environment (AIDA) also joined this call. The 3 organizations are also part of the global #StopFundingOverfishing campaign.
Protect the oceans and confront the pandemic’s crisis
During World Fishing Day, WWF-Ecuador announced an innovative project that will take place in the city of Puerto López, in the Manabí Province. The proposal seeks to implement a sustainable fishing commercialization model through digital transformation, for the economic reactivation after the COVID health emergency. Fairer working conditions for the sector, an improvement in the quality of monitoring information, business models that promote integration and community development and promote responsible consumption, are some of the objectives of the project. It is possible thanks to the funding of the German Society for International Cooperation GIZ, in association with the Vice Ministry of Aquaculture and Fisheries of Ecuador, the Ministry of the Environment and Water and the Municipal GAD of Puerto López.
Ghost gear are the most lethal threat among plastic waste in the world
Abandoned fishing gear is responsible for injuring and killing over 557 marine species, including 66% of marine mammals, 50% of sea birds and all species of sea turtles, subjecting them to a slow, painful and inhumane death. They also damage vital marine habitats such as coral reefs and mangroves, and threaten the food sources and livelihoods of coastal communities and fishermen.
"Illegal disposal" awareness campaign is launched
"Illegal disposal" is a campaign launched by Fundación Vida Silvestre to shed light on the problem of the illegal discarding of hake in the Argentine sea and the overexploitation of the oceans.
Through its official website, which was also recently launched, the general public can access all the documents developed by Vida Silvestre that analyze the industry and other related content on a practice that discards 110 thousand tons of hake per year.
"Pantanal: Life, Death and Renaissance"
On Pantanal Day, WWF-Brazil, WWF-Paraguay and WWF-Bolivia, launched an international photographic exhibition on the world’s largest wetland. The concept of the image collection was to show the biome in three crucial moments of 2020: its splendor, during the fires and the later phase, when the biome attempts to recover. "Pantanal: Life, Death and Renaissance" was developed for virtual users, so it could be accessible to the population of the three countries where the biome is present.
The online exhibit brought together 24 powerful and iconic images of the richness of biodiversity and its exciting resilience, captured by the lenses of renowned Brazilian, Bolivian and Paraguayan photographers. It was available from November 12 to 27 on the Kunst Matrix platform.
WWF launches a book dedicated to the amazing Monarch migration
The Monarch butterfly migration is one of the most astonishing natural phenomena on the planet. Millions of butterflies travel each year from Canada and the United States to Central Mexico. In the past 45 years, since the discovery of hibernation sites in Central Mexico, the Monarch butterfly has become one of the most widely recognized insect species and an indicator of the hemisphere’s environmental health. With more than 17 years as part of the efforts to conserve this migratory phenomenon, the WWF-Telmex Telcel Foundation Alliance has published the book “Monarch Migration”, which covers its natural history. This book is an invitation for everyone to participate in the conservation of nature and its extraordinary phenomena.
The Chilean NDC update was presented by WWF at the London Climate Action Week
The analysis of Chile's climate commitments reached the London Climate Action Week, an event with more than 200 virtual activities to promote climate action on the way to COP26.
For this, WWF organized the webinar “NDCs We Want: Where We Are & Where We Need To Be”, where it presented the main points of its analysis called “NDCs We Want”, based on a checklist of climate commitments with updated information from the countries under the Paris Agreement. Along with international experts, the Director of Conservation for WWF-Chile, Rodrigo Catalán, presented the Chilean case, highlighting the level of influence achieved by civil society, in a context of important social mobilizations.
One million actions for a healthy planet
How can we harness the power of a growing online network of eleven thousand young people? The answer: setting an ambitious goal. Generation 10 has launched the first challenge for its members across Latin America. By using social media, they will be mobilizing one million actions for a healthy planet. Each action is registered in the website as the hashtags #PrayForHumankind and #1millondeacciones are used.
Sharing information, inspiring others, changing habits and switching everyday decisions are the ways young people are getting involved. Local influencers such as Andrew Ponch from Mexico and Raul Santana from Ecuador have also been involved, explaining how they are changing themselves for a healthy planet.
The PICFA is a space for public-private coordination
The PICFA, Interinstitutional Platform for the Articulation of Productive Complexes of Amazon Fruits, is a public-private coordination and articulation space that aims to promote and to strengthen the use of Amazonian fruits from the department of Pando. It also seeks to strengthen the productive vocation along the different links of the chestnut, cocoa, açai and copoazú productive complexes. This refers specifically to production, processing and marketing.
