| PROVITA disseminates information on the health and management of captive and
free-ranging wild animals through a
concessionary Institutional Subscription to WildPro multimedia, initially funded by the Humane Society of the United States in 2000 - 2001. This information has been taken directly from the PROVITA Website:
Year
of incorporation: 1987
Mission: the conservation of the environment in
its widest sense, with emphasis on Venezuelan threatened species and habitat, through the
implementation of projects that integrate conservation and development.
Lines of action:
a) Environmental Research and Management:
includes basic and applied research in both natural and social sciences. The main priority
for research is the establishment of baseline information and monitoring programs, while
all gathered data is stored in easily accessible databases and other information systems.
This line of action strongly emphasizes management of species and their habitat in the
context of human resource use conflicts.
b) Strict Protected Areas Support: includes
providing expertise to governmental organizations that manage such areas. Includes
environmental and social surveys, proposals for the creation of new protected areas,
strengthening current natural areas management practices, development of visitor centers
and other educational activities, facilitation of national and international cooperation
through the implementation of interinstitutional agreements.
c) Conservation Education: begins with an
initial sensitizing stage where people are presented with different elements of the
environment, followed by an awareness building phase where the target audience is
encouraged to become responsible towards its surroundings and to recognize its role in
environmental processes. Provita has developed an educational model based on symbols that
encourage local pride, with excellent results. We also develop promotional activities and
interact closely with the mass media, as well as produce scientific and popular
publications.
d) Sustainable Development: through
community participation, we encourage and suggest sustainable economic alternatives,
especially in rural areas. Includes the promotion of microbusinesses based on ecotourism,
local handcrafts, and traditional economic activities. Also includes rescuing traditional
cultural traditions as a means of developing or strengthening local pride.
List of active projects:
1. Title: Conservation
of Threatened Species in the Laguna de Tacarigua National Park, Miranda State: Awareness
Building Campaign in the Town of Tacarigua de la Laguna
Sponsors: British Embassy, Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA)
Participating Institutions: Provita, Instituto Nacional de Parques (Inparques)
Initiated in: 2001
Laguna de Tacarigua national park is located in the central portion of Venezuelaís
Caribbean coast. This campaign focusses on marine turtles and American crocodiles
(Crocodylus acutus), which nest on the parkís sandbars and lagoons, respectively. In
addition to activities in schools and with park weekend visitors, Provita conducts a
workshop program for national park staff aimed at increasing the level of knowledge of
these species and their role in the ecological services performed by the lagoon.
2. Title: ProCosta: Integrated Conservation
and Development Project Costa Barlovento
Sponsors: PDVSA
Participating Institutions: Provita, Inparques, Ministry of the Environment and Natural
Resources, Neighborhood Organizations, Business Cooperatives.
Initiated in: 1999
The Venezuelan national oil company Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) is Provitaís partner
in this major project devoted to the development of conservation minded practices along
the Venezuelan coast. Focussed on marine turtle conservation, activities range from the
establishment of turtle hatcheries, to eco-business development and conservation education
in schools. The pilot phase of the project is currently being developed in the town of
Chirimena, but it is expected to begin expanding to several additional coastal states in
early 2002.
3. Title: Project
Amazonas: Contribution to the Establishment of Sustainable Practices in the Venezuelan
Amazonia
Sponsors: NOVIB (Netherlands)
Participating Institutions: Provita
Initiated in: 1999.
Set in the Sipapo forestry reserve, this project explores current indigenous peopleís
resource use with the objective of developing sustainable practices that can be
extrapolated to the other Venezuelan lowland forest areas. Five family groups are part of
an initial pilot phase which includes both the analysis of their traditional practices and
experimental tests with a variety of alternative food and cash crops.
4. Title: Project EVE (for Especies
Venezolanas en Vías de Extinción): Red Data Book of the Venezuelan Fauna
Sponsors: Fundación Polar
Participating Institutions: Venezuelan Wildlife Service (Profauna), Wildlife Conservation
Society (WCS), World Conservation Union (IUCN), Provita
Initiated in: 1998 (second edition already published).
The first edition of the Red Data Book of the Venezuelan Fauna was published in 1995 and
it went out of print shortly after that. The second edition includes an update with recent
information, and it is currently in the process of being distributed.
5. Title: Integrated
Conservation and Development Alternatives in the Laguna de la Restinga National Park
Sponsors: Government of the Canary Islands, Government of Nueva Esparta state, Inparques,
WCS
Participating Institutions: Amigos de la Tierra Canarias, Provita
Initiated in: 1997.
Laguna de la Restinga national park is located in Margarita island, along the isthmus that
connects the islandís two peninsulas. Vegetation is composed mainly of mangrove forests
and spiny shrubland. The park is home to several threatened species including ñángaros
(blue-fronted conure, Aratinga acuticaudata neoxena) and American crocodiles. This project
comprises a series of workshops with local inhabitants aimed at developing a variety of
skills, ranging from handcrafts to marketing and business development. It has been very
successful, particularly among women in the towns where workshops and held.
6. Title: Integrated
Center for Conservation and Development, Macanao Peninsula.
Sponsors: Government of the Canary Islands, Government of Nueva Esparta state, WCS
Participating Institutions: Inparques, Amigos de la Tierra Canarias, Provita
Initiated in: 1997. (currently being reformulated)
This project is directly associates with the previous one. This is the facility at which
many of the activities are organized, and it serves as a community assistance center.
Special attention is given to economic alternatives that directly benefit the islandís
threatened species and habitats. For example, recent handcraft workshops have begun to
emphasize local wildlife themes.
7. Title: Ecotourism in the Macanao
Peninsula
Sponsors: Palm Beach Zoo, Tulsa Zoological Park, WCS
Participating Institutions: Provita
Initiated in: 1997. (currently being reformulated)
Aimed at generating financial resources to support conservation activities in Margarita,
this project takes advantage of the popularity of Margarita island as a tourist
destination. Tourists staying in the major hotels in Porlamar are offered day tours to the
sites where Provita carries out its field projects, and are given education information
about the conservation activities and how to help support them.
8. Title: Project EVE (for Especies
Venezolanas en Vías de Extinción): Red Data Book of the Venezuelan Flora
Sponsors: Fundación Polar
Participating Institutions: Fundación Instituto Botánico de Venezuela, Provita
Initiated in: 1996.
This is the second in the series of “Red Books” developed by Provita in close
partnership with the Fundación Polar. The Red Data Book of the Venezuelan Flora benefited
from the participation of all major scientists with knowledge of the countryís threatened
plants. Publication is expected in late 2001.
9. Title: Action Plan for the Conservation
of Venezuelan Species
Sponsors: Fundación Polar, PDVSA
Participating Institutions: Profauna, Fundación para la Defensa de la Naturaleza
(Fudena), Venezuela, Provita
Initiated in: 1995
As a follow up to the publication of the animal and plant red books, this project aims to
define priorities for action for the conservation of Venezuelan species. This project will
involve the Venezuelan committee of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and will be
designed along the lines of traditional IUCN action plans.
10. Title:
Conservation of the ñángaro (Aratinga acuticaudata neoxena) in the Laguna de la Restinga
National Park: an Integrated Education-research Approach. Stage II
Sponsors: WCS
Participating Institutions: Inparques, Provita
Initiated in: 1995.
This critically endangered endemic subspecies is threatened by extraction of fledgling for
the pet trade and nest predation by introduced rats (Rattus sp.). For several years
Provita has been monitoring reproductive success, overseeing surveillance of the main
nesting areas, and developing an educational campaign directed at boatmen who take
tourists to the parkís lagoons (who are also implicated in the illegal trade of
ñángaros).
11. Title: Education
for the Conservation of the Neoespartan Biodiversity
Sponsors: WCS, Fondene, Government of Nueva Esparta state
Participating Institutions: Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources (MARN),
Provita
Initiated in: 1993
The purpose of this project is to conserve the biodiversity of Nueva Esparta state through
increasing the awareness in the general public of environmental problems. Activities focus
on the yellow shouldered parrot (Amazona barbadensis) and other species of regional value
in order to help develop regional pride on behalf of the islandís threatened species and
habitats. This project organizes the “Festival de la Cotorra,” an annual event
that includes music, poetry, dance, and other cultural activities which incorporate the
yellow-souldered parrot into their themes.
12. Title:
Conservation of the Yellow-shouldered Parrot (Amazona barbadensis) on La Blanquilla Island
Sponsors: WCS;
Participating Institutions: Venezuelan Navy, Aerotuy, Provita
Initiated in: 1992 (currently being reformulated).
Roughly 80 yellow-shouldered parrots inhabit La Blanquilla, a small and remote island
located northwest from Margarita. The only permanent settlement there is a base of the
Venezuelan Navy, though fishermen use it as a base during long fishing expeditions.
Activities consist of monitoring of reproductive activity, protection of nests, and the
release of birds from Margarita to supplement the local population. Logistics and high
costs make this a difficult project to carry out on a regular basis.
13. Title: Research and Management of the
Yellow-shouldered Parrot (Amazona barbadensis) in the Macanao Peninsula, Margarita Island
Sponsors: WCS, British Embassy, Papageienfond, BirdLife International, Manomet Bird
Observatory, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Australian Embassy
Participating Institutions: Fundo San Francisco, Provita
Initiated in: 1992
This is Provitaís longest-lasting research project, in development since 1989. Activities
include: a) annual estimates of the population size of Amazona barbadensis in the Macanao
peninsula, b) monitoring of reproductive and feeding habits of the parrot, c) experiment
with artificial nests, d) raising in captivity and reintroducing fledglings confiscated
from the illegal trade by the National Guard, e) protect nesting sites from poachers
during the breeding season.
14. Title: Conservation of the
Yellow-shouldered Parrot (Amazona barbadensis) Through Environmental Surveillance
Participating Institutions: MARN, WCS, National Guard and Provita
Initiated on: 1992.
Program for the surveillance of the parrotís main nesting areas to prevent poaching.
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