A Service of the Rainforest Alliance


Eco-Index® Monthly Update -- August 2011

Escuela Rural Mixta El Porvenir. Photo by Charlie Watson.

Below is a list of all of the projects that have been added to or updated on the Eco-Index during the past 30 days, organized by category.

Features

Best Lessons Learned
Innovative Eco-Initiative
Monitoring and Evaluation
Eco-Exchange
Stories from the Field
On the Record
In Print & Online
Recommended Links
 


Projects

Agriculture and farming | Corridors | Ecotourism and sustainable tourism | Environmental education | Habitat conservation and management | Mammals | Mangroves | Migratory species | Parks and protected areas | Reserves, private

Agriculture and farming

Healthy Farm Index

To assist farm managers in conserving biodiversity and benefiting from ecosystem services, the University of Nebraska at Lincoln developed the Healthy Farm Index.

Responsible organization(s): University of Nebraska, United States

Principal funder(s): United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)

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Corridors

Environmental Administration and Management of the Cerros de Jesús Biological Corridor

This project seeks to harmonize productive activities with biodiversity conservation in the Cerros de Jesús biological corridor, an area of approximately 39,000 acres on Costa Rica's Nicoya Peninsula.

Responsible organization(s): Fundación Cerros de Jesús (FUNCEJE), Costa Rica

Principal funder(s): Fondo Canje de Deuda Costa Rica - Canadá; Peace Corps, USA; Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR); Movimiento Cooperativo Nacional, Costa Rica; Programa de Pequeñas Donaciones (PPD), Costa Rica - Fondo para el Medio Ambiente Mundial; Ministerio de Ambiente, Energía y Telecomunicaciones (MINAET), Costa Rica; Sistema Nacional de Áreas de Conservación (SINAC), Costa Rica; Ministerio de Seguridad Pública, Costa Rica; Movimiento Cooperativo Nacional, Costa Rica

Jaguar Corridor Initiative, Costa Rica

The Jaguar Corridor Initiative is an international project to establish a Biological Corridor to facilitate connectivity between several blocks of protected areas and forest zones in Mesoamerica and South America for jaguars.

Responsible organization(s): Panthera, Costa Rica

Principal funder(s): Panthera, United States

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Ecotourism and sustainable tourism

GREAT Green Deal - Certification Program for Sustainable Tourism, Guatemala

This is an independent certification program that offers the tourism sector a voluntary, third-party evaluation of sustainable performance that recognizes businesses whose practices are economically, socially, culturally, and environmentally responsible.

Responsible organization(s): Certificaciones de Centroamérica, Guatemala

Principal funder(s): Self-sufficient

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Environmental education

Environmental Education Program in the Petén, Guatemala

In 2008, 2009, and 2010 staff from the Rainforest Alliance and partner organizations met with teachers from five communities in the multiple use zone of the Maya Biosphere Reserve for a series of teacher training workshops.

Responsible organization(s): Rainforest Alliance, Regional

Principal funder(s): Nespresso, Global; Plant Family Foundation, United States

Rainforest Alliance Education Program

The Learning Site contains complete lesson plans, resources, and descriptions of species and conservation projects for pre-kindergarten through eighth grade, in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.

Responsible organization(s): Rainforest Alliance, Regional

Principal funder(s): Weaver Family Foundation, United States; Nespresso, Global; Plant Family Foundation, United States; Victoria Foundation, United States; Brooklyn Community Foundation, United States; Con Edison, United States; Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, United States; Staples Foundation for Learning, United States

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Habitat conservation and management

Adopt-A-Rainforest

Through the Adopt-A-Rainforest program, donors to the Rainforest Alliance support the conservation of precious forests in Latin America.

Responsible organization(s): Rainforest Alliance, Regional

Principal funder(s): Self-sufficient

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Mammals

Bat Conservation Priorities and Networks in Mesoamerica and the Caribbean

A Caribbean Regional Bat Workshop focused on assessing the status of all Caribbean bat species, while enhancing collaboration and communication among Caribbean bat specialists.

Responsible organization(s): Lubee Bat Conservancy, United States

Principal funder(s): United States Fish and Wildlife Service - Wildlife Without Borders Program

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Mangroves

Neotropical Mangrove Conservation Alliance

The Mangrove Alliance aims to conserve and sustainably manage mangrove ecosystems in the Neotropics and is foreseen as a dynamic network of public and private organizations and agencies.

Responsible organization(s): BirdLife International

Principal funder(s): Conservation Leadership Programme (CLP), Regional; MacArthur Foundation, United States; United States Forest Service (USFS)

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Migratory species

Conservation Status of Snowy Plovers Breeding in Coastal México

This project aimed to promote the conservation of the snowy plover (Charadrius alexandrines) and its habitat by assessing its distribution and abundance and by developing a conservation plan for the species.

Responsible organization(s): Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada (CICESE), México; ProNatura Noroeste A.C., México

Principal funder(s): United States Fish and Wildlife Service - Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act (NMBCA); Pronatura Veracruz, México; Pronatura Península de Yucatán, México; Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste, México; Pronatura Chiapas, México

Shorebird Sister Schools Program

The Shorebird Sister Schools program grew out of a need to conserve the shorebirds that nest in Alaska, Canada, and the eastern end of Russia, which migrate to temperate zones to feed, rest, and reproduce during the winter.

Responsible organization(s): Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina (FVSA)

Principal funder(s): Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, United States; American Birding Association (ABA), United States; United States Fish and Wildlife Service - Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act (NMBCA)

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Parks and protected areas

Support to the Yasuní National Park Control and Vigilance System and Creation of the Kay Pacha Yaku Hukuma Underwater Environmental Interpretation Center in the Kichwa Center of Nueva Providencia, Ecuador

The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is building the capacity of Yasuní National Park staff to address challenges and involve local communities in the management of their natural resources.

Responsible organization(s): Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Regional

Principal funder(s): United States Fish and Wildlife Service - Wildlife Without Borders Program

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Reserves, private

Children’s Eternal Rainforest

The Children’s Eternal Rainforest protects more than 65,000 acres of tropical forest in Costa Rica’s Tilarán mountain range and is Costa Rica’s largest private reserve.

Responsible organization(s): Asociación Conservacionista de Monteverde, Costa Rica

Principal funder(s): Fondo Nacional de Financiamiento Forestal (FONAFIFO), Costa Rica

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Project Awards

Best Lessons Learned: Support to the Yasuní National Park Control and Vigilance System and Creation of the Kay Pacha Yaku Hukuma Underwater Environmental Interpretation Center in the Kichwa Center of Nueva Providencia, Ecuador

Innovative Eco-Initiative: Neotropical Mangrove Conservation Alliance

Best Monitoring and Evaluation: GREAT Green Deal - Certification Program for Sustainable Tourism, Guatemala

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Interviews & Articles

Eco-Exchange

Diane Jukofsky

Stories from the Field: Meghan Casey, co-founder and co-owner of Chilamate Rainforest Eco Retreat in Costa Rica, talks about her experience in maintaining a private nature reserve and starting a sustainable lodge.

On the Record: Diane Jukofsky, Vice President of Communications, Marketing and Education, Rainforest Alliance, reflects on the first 10 years of the Eco-Index.

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Resources

In Print & Online: The Millennium Development Goals Report 2011

Recommended Links: ConservationTraining.org

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