One of them is Raul, a biologist who has dedicated his entire life to the study and conservation of the Chocó rainforest (located on the border between Ecuador, Colombia and Peru), one of the primary forests with the greatest biodiversity left on the planet.
Raul produces cocoa to financially support the families who live in this forest, and helps children maintain their ancestral traditions linked to the jungle.
A cultural approach to the fight against deforestation. A journey to discover a nearly lost world.
From the 1989 Itapoa Project conducts research and conservation work in the Chocó Biogeographic Region, in northwest Latin America, along the Pacific coast. Unfortunately, more than 70% of the Chocó has been destroyed, placing it in the alarming category of HOTSPOTs.
In addition to his fieldwork, Itapoa Project founder Raul Nieto also lectures in the United States and Europe on the future of the rainforest, focusing primarily on the region's biodiversity and the destruction it has experienced over the past 50 years.
These are the fundamental ideas on which Raul's project is based:
– Develop and implement a program to provide sustainable livelihoods to smallholder farming communities in the municipality of Timbiqui, Colombia, using cocoa and cocoa products as a primary cash crop.
– Ensure that deforestation is halted and reforestation is encouraged to improve animal habitat and preserve biodiversity.
– Help local communities develop value-added derivatives from their crops.
– Empower the men and women of these communities (as leaders) so that they become independent and proactive in protecting their lands.
