GIZ project on communal protected areas - new strategy to preserve rainforests and their biodiversity

In occasion of the upcoming celebration of the International Day of Biodiversity on 22nd May, focusing this year on biodiversity and sustainable tourism, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH published an interesting article on a project under implementation in Peru.

The project, centred on the collaboration between the indigenous population and the local authorities, aims at developing new forms of sustainable development by encouraging the use of forest products, like for instance, Copaiba oil, extracted from plants used to develop drugs to fight leishmaniasis, or syringes (natural rubber), achiote (a natural dye), wood and cocoa.
The project in Peru was commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB)
. So far the initiative has been implemented for some 65,000 hectares of forest, resulting in more than 30 native communities improving their employment and income opportunities.

Further information:
International Day of Biodiversity: in Peru, indigenous groups are working with state authorities to manage communal conservation areas, thereby preserving biodiversity. 
Conservación de la biodiversidad en áreas protegidas comunitarias de la región amazónica