Climate Action Brazil Project #22098

Forests4Water Brazil: Community Climate Action

by Iracambi

Forests4Water Brazil: Community Climate Action

Project Report | May 29, 2025
Sneak peek behind the scenes at Forests4Water

By Luiz and Binka | Project Manager and Story Teller

Heading to the field

Dear donors, and we hope you are doing well!

First of all, we'd like to extend a warm welcome and a big thank you to those of you who found us on project 69025 when we had to move our project over there. As you know, the move was caused by a temporary glitch with our tax designation, and the problem is now happily resolved. So Forests4Water is home, and we're thrilled to see you all!

For this letter from the field we thought you might like to take a sneak peek behind the scenes and get the inside scoop on what goes on when we're not actually out planting trees, (often in the pouring rain!)

No, it's not that we're sitting in the sun doing nothing - we're actually just as busy as we are during the planting season. But slightly less muddy!

As the planting season draws to a close, there's a ton of stuff to be done. Nursery work continues year round - making compost, collecting seeds, propagating seedlings (different trees give seed at different times of year so there's seed collecting going on pretty much all the time.) Now's the time to check the irrigation system - last year we had a prolonged drought, and, while the seedlings in the nursery survived, some of those that we had planted didn't make it.

Meanwhile the backroom boys and girls are filling in funding applications, uploading the statistics, storing the data, and calculating the impacts - environmental and social. Our researchers are checking the camera traps and sound recordings to register the presence of apex predators in the forests. Why? To show us the health of the ecosystem. The field staff are out monitoring the reforested areas, checking on canopy cover, species composition, seedling survival rate (around 80%) and the incidence of invasive species. And project manager Luiz is planning the next season's planting which will begin when the rains set in.

None of this would be possible without the support of our funders, donors, staff, and community members. We are grateful to each one of you, and promise you that every donation makes a difference!

with love and appreciation from Luiz, the nursery staff, the field staff, and everyone at Iracambi

Collecting seeds

Seedling propagated

Reforestry plot

Luiz: Forestry Manager

Ocelot: Night visitor

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Feb 17, 2025
Prehistoric Plants, Community Integration and Girls in Science Day

By Carla da Hora Duailibi | Comunication Coordinator

Samabaiacu

Hello everyone! We hope you are well!

We're very happy to share some hot news from Iracambi, straight from the Atlantic Forest. We've got news about a prehistoric plant, cultural exchange between volunteers and the community and reforestation. Thanks to the solidarity of our donors, we are still going strong in our efforts to reforest this important biome and make a difference to the community. Our year has just begun! Let's keep going together.

Happy reading, and have a great week!

Iracambi Team

Samambaiaçu: a plant from the Atlantic forest that has existed since the time of the dinosaurs

Samambaiaçu, popularly known as Xaxim, is a fascinating species from the Atlantic Rainforest. Our Environmental Education Coordinator, Dayana Duarte, explains that the samambaiaçu has a very fibrous trunk that is much sought after and used in gardening. Its rampant exploitation and illegal harvesting led to it being listed as endangered in 1992. In other words, it has been protected by law ever since. Link to video below.

Samambaiaçu has no flowers, fruits or seeds. Its reproduction is based on very small spores that remain under the leaves and need ideal conditions to multiply. It takes 100 years to reach ten metres in height, which means that it grows slowly. Isn't it sad to think that a species that has existed for millions of years, since the time of the dinosaurs, could become extinct because of human activity?

Cultural exchange: Together we are part of one world

Isabel Schroer, the Iracambi volunteer who produced this incredible video and wrote the text, has a story and a very beautiful message to share with you that says a lot about our NGO. Link to video below

“The aim of the cultural exchange project is to promote cultural exchange between Iracambi's volunteers, most of whom come from other countries, and students from the communities surrounding the NGO. This initiative allows the students to broaden their horizons and learn about new realities. Each week, a volunteer presents the riches of his or her country, its culture, environment, sports, curiosities and cuisine. To enrich the experience, they prepare typical dishes for everyone to try. Before the presentations, the students practise their English in small groups, which helps them to feel more confident in communicating. The students also proudly presented Brazil, Minas Gerais and the stories of their own community. The presentations included music, traditional dances and moments of interaction that made learning easy and fun. It was an exciting exchange, full of learning and new perspectives. Cultural exchange goes beyond learning about other cultures. It's an opportunity to practise languages, build bridges and reinforce the idea that 'TOGETHER WE ARE PART OF ONE WORLD'.”

Let's celebrate Women and Girls in Science Day

To celebrate the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, 11th February, we share (link to video below) this beautiful testimony from 11-year-old Isadora, one of the Young Ecoleaders trained here in Iracambi in last year's girls' class. The project engages students from the region in immersive experiences in the Atlantic Forest and hands-on learning to foster a new generation of environmental champions. At Iracambi, we believe in the transformative power of education in nature. Through hands-on experiences and engaging programs, we prepare students to protect this biome which is so vital to our region, the country, and our planet.

Dayana and Samambaiacu

cultural exchange

Volunteers cultural exchange

Women and Girls in Science Day

Links:

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Jan 15, 2025
2025 has begun and we have fresh news to share

By Carla da Hora Duailibi | Comunication Coordinator

Forests4Water

Hello everyone! We hope you are well!

2025 has started with a lot of work here. We're very excited and would like to share some hot news from Iracambi, straight from the Atlantic Rainforest. We've had a lot of rain and a lot of activity from our volunteers. Thanks to the solidarity of our donors, we are still going strong in our efforts to reforest this important biome and make a difference to the community. Our year has just begun! Let's keep going together.

Happy reading, and have a great week!

Iracambi Team

Volunteers help reforest the Forests for Water project

Working in reforestation on our Forests for Water project is a great learning experience and very valuable. Take a look at this video that volunteer Isabel made to show some of the activities that take place.

She explains that the volunteers are guided by coordinator Luiz Gusmão and, together with our staff, they dig the holes and plant the seedlings of native Atlantic forest species grown in our nursery.

This rainy season is the ideal time for planting, so we're very busy making the most of the rains on behalf of the future trees, which will provide shelter and food for animals and promote biodiversity.

Have you ever heard of this fascinating mushroom?

In this video we show you a jewel of the Atlantic Rainforest. Environmental Education Coordinator Dayana Duarte explains a little more about the Clathrus ruber mushroom, popularly known as the witches' cage mushroom. During the rainy season, when there's more humidity, it's common to find the mushroom under leaf litter with lots of organic matter.

With its bright red colour and lacy shape, the fungus has another striking characteristic: its smell is very strong and reminiscent of decaying matter, such as carrion This smell attracts flies and the spores of the fungus that stick to the flies' legs are spread to give rise to new mushrooms.

The presence of the witch's cage in Iracambi proves the biodiversity of the forest and fills us with joy .

Iracambi promotes cultural exchange with students from nearby community

Fun, integration, learning and lots of games! That's how the cultural exchange between the volunteers from Iracambi, coordinated by our manager Gabriela Soares, went last week in the hall of the Belisário Artisans' Group (GAB). For those who don't know, Belisário is a district of Muriaé, located in the Brigadeiro State Mountains and next to Iracambi. It was an incredible time and we had a lot of fun with the children! We would like to thank the management of GAB for giving us the opportunity to be together.

Fascinating mushroom

cultural exchange

Links:

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