A2.0 present at the International Environmental Fair in Colombia

This year, Fundación Natura participated in the FIMA International Environmental Fair, a scenario for meetings, dissemination of projects and environmental goods and services, which took place from September 29th to October 2nd at the Corferias facilities in the city of Bogota (Colombia).

The event, organized by the Ministry of the Environment and Sustainable Development and Corferias, had as its special guest the European Union, who financed the Amazonia 2.0 project throughout the region. During the four days of the fair, there were more than 200 experts on environmental issues, 152 academic activities, 4,000 m2 of exhibition space and 8,900 visitors.

In addition, the Ministry of the Environment held the International Environmental Congress, one of the four main themes of which was "Ecological Restoration in New Territorial Configurations", in which representatives of governments, companies and national and international non-governmental organizations discussed the challenges in urban and rural contexts.

Four outstanding initiatives participated in the panel "Conservation Experiences with an Adaptation Approach", moderated by Captain Francisco Arias, Director of the Marine and Coastal Research Institute (Invemar). The community leaders who presented their initiatives were: Luisa García, community promoter in the Páramo de Las Domínguez, Pan de Azúcar and Vallebonito de Tenerife, Valle del Cauca; Danny Tumiña, lobbyist of the Indigenous Resguardo of Guambía de Silvia, Cauca; Casimiro Newball, from the initiative Corales Comunidad Raizal, Providencia; and our environmental promoter from Solano, Caquetá, Eider Valderrama, articulated to the Amazonia 2.0 project in Colombia.

International Environmental Congress, panel "Conservation experiences with an adaptation approach".

During his speech, Eider highlighted the impacts generated by community monitoring, implemented since 2017 between the campesino community of the Mononguete nucleus and the Inga indigenous community of Niñeras, to make informed decisions that allow better management of natural resources in their territory. 

"For us as campesinos it has been important and for our indigenous neighbors it has been fundamental. We made an expedition of the Niñeras Creek where we traveled 48 kilometers. As farmers we are fortunate that this stream originates in our territory, but unfortunately we realized when we reached the source that it was completely deforested," said Eider, recognizing one of the most important findings in the accompaniment of Fundación Natura through the Amazonia 2.0 project, after identifying that in both communities (indigenous - campesino) water was becoming scarce.

Eider Valderrama’s intervention in the panel "Conservation experiences with an adaptation approach".

The environmental promoter also emphasized that it was from the day they learned of the source of the Niñeras stream that indigenous and campesino communities began a strategy to get to know their territory, which has led them over the course of more than three years to reach conservation agreements, generate and record accurate information on the real state of their ecosystems and implement joint actions for their recovery.

Fundación Natura's stand at the International Environment Fair (FIMA).

During the four days of the Fair, Fundación Natura's stand also showcased, through photographs and presentations, the impact of Amazonia 2.0 at the Amazon basin level with its intervention in five other countries and the outstanding actions carried out by social organizations and local communities in terms of governance in Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Guyana and Suriname. It was also possible to showcase other environmental projects led by Fundación Natura, such as GEF Magdalena Cauca vive.

Undoubtedly, FIMA was a strategic scenario to publicize our actions for the benefit of nature and contribute to raising awareness of the importance of the Amazon ecosystem for the safeguarding of planet Earth.