Pride Campaign: Atlantic Forest
Country: Brazil
Partner: Instituto de Estudos Sócio-Ambientais do Sul da Bahia
Campaign Manager: Ana Roberta Gomes
Project Area: The Atlantic Forest between Una and Itacaré, in southern Bahia
Principal Threats: These include hunting (fueled by the illegal wildlife trade), over-fishing, deforestation (over-exploitation of forest resources by the wood industry), and river pollution (from garbage, sewage, auto washing, agrochemical contamination, inappropriate agricultural techniques such as the use of fire, and the illegal pet trade). There is a general lack of awareness of existing laws governing the use of natural resources.
Project Goal: To contribute to the establishment of the Central Corridor of the Mata Atlantica between Una and Itacaré, in southern Bahia state, as an instrument for the conservation and sustainable management of natural resources
Flagship Species: Maned three-toed sloth (Bradypus torquatus)
Campaign Slogan: Corredor Ecologico: Um caminho de Vida Na Mata (Ecological Corridor: A Path of Life through the Forest)
Notable Information from the Questionnaire Survey
- 75% of those surveyed believed their way of life would be drastically affected if the Atlantic Forest were to disapper.
- Responses to survey questions suggested that the target community does not feel responsible for protecting its environment.
- 87.2% of those surveyed did not realize that they were living within an ecological corridor.
Campaign SMART Objectives:
- Objective 1: After 10 months of the campaign, 50% (up from 20%) of the inhabitants of the municipalities of Una and Itacaré will understand the concept of ecological corridors as instruments for the conservation and sustainable management of natural resources, and will know what they can do to support the implementation of the Central Corridor of the Atlantic Forest.
- Objective 2: After 10 months of the campaign, an additional 30% of the inhabitants of the municipalities of Una and Itacare will recognize that they live within the central corridor of the Atlantic Forest (up from 8%).
- Objective 3: After 10 months of the campaign, an additional 30% of the inhabitants of the municipalities of Una and Itacaré will know three functions of an ecological corridor (up from 4%).
- Objective 4: That there be a 20% increase in the number of Private Natural Patrimony Reserves (RPPN) and Legal Reserves around the conservation units (REBIO-Una and PESC) in the municipalities of Una and Itacare by the end of the campaign. There are currently 19 RPPNs.
- Objective 5: After 10 months of the campaign, that there be an increase of 30% in the number of people that say they participated in an environmental activity over the last six months. According to the pre-campaign questionnaire, 10% of those surveyed had participated in an environmental activity over the last six months.
Highlights from the Results (based on pre- and post-campaign surveys):
- Number of people who understood the concepts of conservation and sustainable management grew from 17% to 27%
- 39.2% of the target population now knows that they live inside the Central Corridor of the Atlantic Forest, the first step toward changing attitudes toward protection. This is an increase of 31.2 percentage points.
- 23% reported participating in a conservation activity, up from 14%.
