Trésor designated as Regional Nature Reserve
Vijko Lukkien
'Réserve naturelle' becomes 'Réserve régionale' | | photo Charlotte Briand |
In the previous issue of Trésor News (TN28) the editorial staff was able to announce, at the very last moment, that the Conseil Régional of French Guiana (the parliament), gathered in plenary assembly on Tuesday, 21 April last, had decided to 'grant Trésor Reserve the status of 'Réserve Naturelle Régionale' (RNR) with seventeen votes for and three abstentions!
In an interview published in the French-Guyanese newspaper 'France-Guyane' of 13 June last our forester Kévin Pineau states that granting this status in this department of France must be regarded as a precedent.
Why a different status?
The original protected status granted by the French government in 1997 in Paris was: 'voluntary nature reserve', meaning that the status resulted from the owner's initiative, in our case the Trésor Foundation.
Besides these 'voluntary reserves' the central French government also designated nature reserves, albeit later on. One example is the Kaw marsh, bordering the Trésor reserve. Trésor played an important and stimulating part in this .
However, a French law enacted that the status of 'voluntary nature reserve' lapsed from the year 2000 and that the new status of 'regional nature reserve' had to be determined on departmental level (not on central level in Paris anymore).
What is the difference?
In a number of respects little has changed. The Foundation remains the owner of the reserve and the Association Trésor will continue the local management. The legal rules that are in force for the original voluntary status, will be drawn up anew, most probably with a few amendments and additions.
It is important to mention here that these new rules are determined by a study group created especially for this purpose and where the members of Association Trésor are well represented.
We assume that the most important protective rules will be copied and extended with new ones (especially as far as access to the savannahs is concerned).
Furthermore, the government will establish a special committee for the Regional Nature Reserve whose task will be, among other things, to see to it that our Management Plan 2008 - 2012 will actually be carried out.
What are the advantages?
Although on the face of it the changes don't seem to be major, there is a great advantage for Trésor in all this. After all, assignment by the departmental government (which is the local population) has granted a Dutch initiative supported by you as a donor, highly important recognition and acknowledgement for all the joint efforts we performed the past years to preserve rainforests for the future.
A new organisation in French Guiana :
The 'Conservatoire des Espaces Naturels De Guyane'¹
Kévin Pineau
 |
1=Île du Grand Connétable
2=Mont Matoury
3=Nouragues
4=Trinité
5=Amana | 6=Marais Kaw-Roura
7=Trésor
8=Parc Amazonien de Guyane
9=Parc naturel régional
de la Guyane
10= Marais de Yiyi.
|
French Guiana has a profusion of species of plants and animals, as you may know. This country offers the European Union a large area of pristine Amazon rainforest and puts on France a heavy burden to protect it. Since 1992, the date of the foundation of the first reserve, French Guiana has enforced many measures to protect its extensive territory (French Guiana is more than twice as big as the Netherlands).
The French have extensive legislation on conservation of nature and that is the reason why there are all kinds of protective statuses. To date French Guiana has:
- " six national nature reserves: Île du Grand Connétable, Mont Matoury, Nouragues, Trinité, Amana and the Kaw-Roura swamps;
- one regional nature reserve: Trésor;
- one national park: Parc Amazonien de Guyane
- one regional park: Parc naturel régional de la Guyane;
- areas of the Conservatoire du Littoral ²: e.g. the Yiyi swamps.
Not only is there a diversity in nature reserve organisations, the profiles of the administrators differ as well: associations, local authorities, public institutions, mixed corporations, etc.
On the one hand it is a good thing that there are so many organisations but this can also be detrimental to the internal relationships and the communication between those involved.
These institutions had already been functioning for a couple of years and had developed, when it was concluded that there wasn't enough exchange of personnel, scientific protocols, actions, etc. between the protected areas.
A new cooperation has now been founded to put an end to this situation. It's a cooperation which unites all the administrators of the protected areas: the Conservatoire des Espaces Naturels de Guyane (CENG)
Cette structure a pour objet statutaire:
The aim of this umbrella organization is the protection of nature, species of plants and animals, habitats and landscapes of French Guiana.
Its main goal is to contribute to the management of the protected nature reserves, according to the following guidelines/directives:
Organization and stimulation of all administrators of nature reserves
The organization aims at encouraging of the exchange of information and scientific knowledge between administrators, research organisations and authorities. Scientific research protocols, test plots and reference collections can be determined and disseminated collectively.
Recommendation of protection of new nature reserves
This recommendation can be presented to the state, the authorities and the public institutions (Conservatoire du Littoral, Office Nationals de Forêts³). The form of the suggested status will be determined in mutual consultation between regional reserves, biological reserves, Littoral areas, etc. The new areas can be admitted to the founded umbrella organization. The Conservatoire can assist in planning the management.
Improvement of external relationships
The managers of the protected nature reserves should not only take into account the opinion of the residents and of the societies and authorities concerned, but also involve them as much as possible in the decision process (e.g. participation or partnership agreement) and in definite actions. The Conservatoire will support the actions of its members in these matters.
Management of environmental data
A mutual database will be set up for scientists, institutions and authorities. The information contained in the database will mainly consist of geographical data and data on species and natural habitats. It may also concern a reference collection of species of animals (French Guiana does not yet have a zoological collection). The aim will be to cooperate with the Herbarium of French Guiana which is under supervision of the 'Institut pour la Recherche et le Développement'4 and with all organizations that already manage specialised databases (French Nature reserves, for SERENA, DIREN, etc).
Improvement of conditions of employment for the management of protected areas
Conservatoire will stimulate administrators to support each other in certain positions by organizing training and joint actions for all members of the staff and by offering interesting career prospects.
The Conservatoire des Espaces Naturels has existed for one year chaired by GEPOG (Groupe d 'Etude et de protection des oiseaux en Guyane 5), with the Association Nature Reserve Trésor as vice chairman and the Office National des Forêts (ONF) as treasurer.
__________________
1 Association of Nature reserves in French Guiana
2 Association for Coastal Protection
3 Forestry Commission
4 Institution for scientific research and development
5 Group for research and protection of the birds in French Guiana
Les tapirs sont de très bons nageurs
| | photo Foto Natura |
Nouvelles de la Forêt tropicale humide
Etude concernant l'influence
de la chasse
Kévin Pineau/Jef Szpigel
Désirant mieux connaître la place qu'occupent les espèces concernées par la chasse, nous avions émis le souhait de programmer une étude de type IKA (Indices kilométriques d'abondance) ce qui figure dans notre plan de gestion. Dans la mesure du possible une recherche commune aux deux réserves ayant des espaces protégés sur la Montagne de Kaw nous semblait plus cohérente afin de pouvoir effectuer de judicieuses comparaisons. Le WWF Guianas a répondu à notre sollicitation de partenariat et a donc accepté de financer ce nouvel axe d'étude. La Réserve Naturelle Régionale de Trésor a donc élaboré un protocole d'étude similaire à celui mis en place par l'ONCFS et l'association Kwata, ces deux organismes étant en Guyane les références dans ce domaine d'étude. Nous avons donc créé deux layons de 3 km chacun à parcourir par deux prospecteurs durant dix jours. Pour cette opération, nous avons mobilisé notre garde animateur Jean-François Szpigel et nous avons proposé à notre ancien stagiaire BenoIt Villette un contrat salarié pris en charge par le financement du WWF Guianas. Le secteur à prospecter est situé dans le bas de la réserve. Le premier layon, nommé A sur le terrain, borde une grande partie de la crique Favard et passe à proximité des savanes incluses. Le deuxième, nommé B, reprend l'ancien tracé d'accès aux savanes puis se prolonge dans la direction de la crique roche. Au cours du layonage, nous avons eu la bonne surprise de rencontrer un tapir (Tapirus terrestris).
Résultats
Entre le 22 Août et le 02 Septembre 2009, notre équipe a donc parcouru les 120 km requis. Bien qu'il soit encore trop tôt pour analyser les résultats (et en attendant que la session de la Réserve Naturelle des marais de Kaw soit effectuée), nous pouvons d'ores et déjà annoncer que les observations réalisées trahissent une situation pressentie. Une bonne richesse spécifique a été mise en évidence avec 17 espèces différentes contactées au cours de l'étude (12 mammifères, 5 oiseaux gibiers). Le problème réside dans de faibles taux d'abondance ce qui suggère une activité de chasse régulière sur la Réserve malgré l'interdiction affichée. Par ailleurs, un autre signe inquiétant transparait. Les deux espèces les plus sensibles, le Kwata ou Atèle noir (Ateles paniscus) pour les mammifères et les Hoccos (Crax alector) pour les oiseaux n'ont pas été contactées.
| Espèces | Nombre de
rencontres | IKA 10km |
| Rongeurs |
| Acouchi (Myoprocta acouchy) | 2 | 0,17 |
| Agouti (Dasyprocta agouti) | 4 | 0,33 |
| Primates |
| Capucin blanc (Cebus olivaceus) | 5 | 0,42 |
| Capucin brun (Cebus apella) | 1 | 0,08 |
| Hurleur roux (Alouatta seniculus) | 7 | 0,58 |
| Saki à face pale (Pithecia pithecia) | 1 | 0,08 |
| Tamarin (Saguinus midas) | 1 | 0,08 |
| Carnivores |
| Coati (Nasua nasua) | 2 | 0,17 |
| Tayra (Eira barbara) | 2 | 0,17 |
| Artiodactyles |
| Pécari à collier (Tayassu tajacu) | 1 | 0,08 |
| Daguet rouge (Mazama americana) | 6 | 0,5 |
| Xénarthres |
| Grand fourmilier (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) | 1 | 0,08 |
| Oiseaux |
| Agami (Psophia crepitans) | 3 | 0,25 |
| Marail (Pénélope marail) | 1 | 0,08 |
| Tinamou sp. (Tinamus et Crypturellus) | 9 | 0,75 |
| Tocro (Odontophorus guianensis) | 3 | 0,25 |
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Autres Observations : Durant les IKA de Trésor, nous avons observé trois nouvelles espèces de lézards (Iphisa elegans, Alopoglossus angulatus, Anolis punctatus) et une espèce d'amphibiens (Osteocephalus cabrerai) à ajouter à l'inventaire herpétologique. | | Photos: Jef Szpigel / BenoIt Villette |
Promenade sur le sentier botanique
Richard Kok
Près du carbet le groupe se prépare pour la promenade. | | photo Richard Kok |
Dimanche matin 17 mai il y a une visite guidée du sentier botanique. BenoIt et moi, nous nous sommes levés tôt ce matin. ça fait déjà quelques jours que nous logeons dans la Maison de la Réserve (le carbet). Nous attendons Kévin Pineau et Jef Szpigel vers huit heures. Avant il faudra prendre le petit déjeuner, se laver et mettre de l'ordre dans le carbet. A neuf heures moins le quart les premiers participants arrivent. Jef et Kévin n'y sont pas encore et je commence à m'inquiéter. Jusqu'ici ils ont toujours été d'une parfaite exactitude. Au moment que je vais les téléphoner, la voiture de Trésor entre dans le parking. Kévin n'est pas dans la voiture, il paraît qu'il est toujours souffrant (vendredi dernier il a mangé quelque chose qu'il a mal supporté). C'est Jef qui nous fera découvrir le sentier, avec Magali. Magali fait un stage chez Kwata, une association de protection de la nature à Cayenne. Elle nous parlera de l'enregistrement photographique de grands chats à l'aide de caméras-pièges. Avec une caméra-piège une image est captée juste au moment qu'un gros animal (félin) passe devant. Moi-même j'ai eu la chance de voir et d'entendre un puma dans la réserve il y a quelques jours, rien qu'un instant.
Magali explique le fonctionnement d'une caméra-piège. | | photo Richard Kok |
Quand Jef commence à raconter sur Trésor nous sommes 22 participants. Lors de l'introduction Jef parle aussi de l'importance de Trésor pour la région. Ensuite nous nous mettons en route. Nous nous arrêtons souvent, afin de donner l'occasion à Jef de nous parler de la riche abondance de flore et faune. Avant peu un deuxième expert se révèle. Cet homme se présente spontanément comme guide et nous avons maintenant deux guides. Mon français n'est pas fameux, mais je peux suivre plus ou moins l'explication des deux guides. Nous observons des araignées, des sauterelles, des grenouilles, des fourmis ? et évidemment beaucoup d'arbres et de plantes. Il fait sec, trop sec pour la saison. La pluie qui normalement tombe ici, s'abat maintenant sur le Brésil et y cause des ennuis. Aujourd'hui aussi il fera sec.
Juste avant le poste d'observation une camera piège est accrochée à un arbre et mise en marche. Ensuite Magali nous parle d'une manière claire et détaillée de la camera piège. Le public s'y intéresse vivement, ce qui ensuit des questions nombreuses qu'on pose après. Les deux enfants (un garçon et une fille) ne s'arrêtent de passer devant le piège, déclenchant chaque fois le flash. Cela leur fait rire aux éclats, à en perdre haleine. Après l'explication nous continuons lentement notre chemin. Les beaux et grands papillons bleus (Morpho) sont aussi de la partie. En arrivant à la réserve, il y a maintenant 6 semaines, j'avais voulu en faire une photo. Mais ce papillon est très rapide et semble se reposer à peine. C'est pourquoi je n'arrive pas à en faire une photo. Entretemps j'ai abandonné tout espoir d'une belle photo. Je désigne le papillon aux autres et je jouis de chaque moment que je le vois voltigeant par la forêt.
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Benoît Villette a fait pendant trois mois une étude sur la présence du Dendrobates tinctorius (une grenouille à flèche empoisonnée) dans la réserve. Il se passionne pour les reptiles et amphibiens, sa spécialisation lors de ses études de biologie. Steve Irwin est son grand exemple et cela se voit dans son travail - tous les reptiles et amphibiens qu'il rencontre sont étudiés à fond et au besoin, collectés. Benoît est originaire de Marseille.
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De retour dans le carbet nous avons encore une surprise pour les participants. Hier soir BenoIt a attrapé un Boa (Corallus hortulanus) et nous leur montrons ce serpent. La majorité trouve le serpent étonnant, bien que la petite fille a peur au début. Mais la peur semble disparaître vite, car elle aussi touche prudemment le serpent et le caresse.
Quelques jours avant nous avons collecté des œufs de salamandre mis à nu par des travaux de taille. Nous les avons mis dans une petite boIte en plastic. Une salamandre (Kentropyx calcarata) vient de sortir de l'œuf et court en rond dans la boIte. Elle est si rapide qu'en levant le couvercle, elle file tout de suite. Nous réussissons avec peine à rattraper la salamandre. Ce trouvaille aussi est estimé à sa juste valeur par les participants.
Vers midi, midi et demie les premiers s'en vont et les derniers suivront peu après. Une fois de plus, la promenade guidée a été un succès.
The Board looks back on an eventful year
2008 has been a special year for the Trésor Foundation!
Aart de Lang
We have worked very hard to realize our three main goals:
- the protection of biological diversity and the ecosystems present in our area
- the promotion of scientific research and
- providing education about nature and the environment
You will find the entire annual report as checked by KPMG on our website, www.tresorrainforest.org.
Below we review the main activities.
Protection of biological diversity and the ecosystems present in our area
Collaboration with local organisations
In 2008 a lot of attention has been addressed to maintaining and where possible improving further collaboration with the Association Trésor, the World Wildlife Fund in the Netherlands and in French Guiana and relevant organisations and governmental bodies in France and French Guiana, including the Conservatoire du Littoral and the Office National des Forêts - ONF.
Managing plan has come into force
Our managing plan, based on the report RAPPAM (Rapid Assessment and Prioritisation of Protected Area Management), published in 2007, has been put to the CSRPN (Conseil Scientifique Régional du Patrimoine Naturel) in French Guiana in October 2008 and has subsequently been published in Dutch and in French as an internal document.
The managing activities will been executed according to the annual work scheme included in the plan. In 2008 the Association has organised some volunteers' days ('mayouris') too for more extensive maintenance work and bird research. During these days for instance the building site for the new reception building has been prepared and a shelter along the educational trail has been replaced.
Second warden appointed
In 2007 thanks to the financial contribution of the WWF a second warden has been appointed for the reserve, being Charlotte Briand. Thanks to the financial contribution of the Greenchoice company in 2007, is was possible to maintain this position in 2008.
Maintenance
Over the entire year maintenance work has been executed on the educational trail and the information signs along it. At the end of each week the route has been cleared so it would be well and safely passable during the increasingly busy weekends.
Surveillance
Surveillance including checking compliance with the rules for visiting the reserve has been given a lot of attention in 2008. To be able to execute this task we are collaborating with the relevant local organisations including the State police, the French Forestry Commission and colleagues of the adjacent Kaw Reserve. All this aiming to execute these tasks jointly and organised if and whenever possible.
In Montpellier Kévin Pineau has successfully attended the course 'special powers of investigation nature reserves on land'. The second part of this course consists for instance of swearing the oath at the Courts of Justice. This will take place at the beginning 2009.
Working visits
In 2008 two very useful working visits to members of the Association Trésor in French Guiana have taken place. In February Vijko and Pipasi Lukkien visited Trésor and Aart De Lang did so in September. There have been reports of these visits in previous issues of Trésor News. During these working visits there have been intensive consultations with local authorities and organisations and of course with our colleagues of the Association.
Gold mining stopped!
Several times and with our support the Association Trésor has lodged complaints against the intended gold mining in the Kaw area by the Canadian company Cambior. Several paragraphs included in MER (Environmental Effects Report) proved to have been insufficiently explained or not filled out at all. It turned out there were many objections against these mining activities within the French-Guianese society as well and a collective was founded named 'Non à Cambior', in which many social organisations (including the Association Trésor) have joined forces. As in 2006, in 2007 all activities by Cambior in the Kaw area (from 2006 onwards named 'Iamgold'), had ceased for the time being. In February 2008 the French government, through the French president Sarkozy, decided to deny permission to the intended gold mining in the area altogether.
Long distance hiking path
In 2008 together with the Office National des Forêts (ONF) a beginning has been made to develop a long distance hiking path through the Kaw area. In close consultation with our Association Trésor we intend to collaborate on this project.
Promoting scientific research
In 2008 we have continued our scientific research. The costs of this have been met by external parties.
Bird research
We try to obtain more insight into the densities of particular species of birds, migration behaviour and survivals rates, recruiting rates and nesting periods with the research program into the of composition and dynamics of bird species within bird populations in the undergrowth of the rain forest in the Trésor reserve (STOC). In 2008 six catching sessions have taken place. This research is being executed in collaboration with workers of the organisation GEPOG (Groupe d'Étude et de Protection des Oiseaux en Guyane), a large number of volunteers and the Natural History Museum of Paris.
In 2008 Kévin Pineau passed his exam for bird ring research. The corresponding certificate has been presented by the Centre de Recherche sur la Biologie des Populations d'Oiseaux (CRPBO).
Research in the border regions
In collaboration with the Conservatoire du Littoral and the National Herbarium, Utrecht department, a new research expedition is being prepared to get a first impression of the botanical wealth of the new border regions to be added to the reserve. This research has been conducted in December 2008 lead by dr. Renske Ek.
No less than 56 species of bats!
Next to this members of the Association have conducted several inventories. They mainly concern the composition of species and size of the bat population. With the aid of mr. Pieter Blondé (a bat specialist from Ghent) people have been working on a new inventory of the bat species living in the reserve for two months in 2008. In total 399 individuals have been caught. The number of species within the reserve including is border regions has now reached 56!
Monitoring research
In 2008 several monitoring researches have been conducted as well, including one into populations of Dendrobates tinctorius, species of Gastropoden and the species of dragonflies along the Crique Favard. In the last-mentioned research 13 species have been established, including one species (Epipleoneura nehalennia) which is rare in French Guiana.
Phenological research
Our wardenCharlotte Briand together with dr. Renske Ek has conducted phenological research along the nature trail in 2008. Data of flowering or fruit bearing plants have been collected. The increase in the number is registered species in all fauna groups over 2007-2008 period is:
| Fauna group | Number of species | Development 2007/2008 |
| Birds | 306 | + 6 |
| Mammals | 102 | + 38 * |
| Reptiles | 61 | + 1 |
| Amfibians | 45 | - 3 |
|
* The increase in the number of mammals is mainly due to the number of newly registered species of bats.
Until the end of 2008 1140 species of plants have been described for the Trésor
reserve (including border regions).
Education about nature and environment
Trésor Nieuws
In 2008 our informative bulletin 'Trésor Nieuws' has been published three times, in April, June and November.
Day for contributors
On 22 June 2008 a day for the contributors and sponsors of our Foundation have been organized at the Botanical Gardens of Utrecht University. Over 110 participants attended the presentations by dr. Hans ter Steege (advisor to the Trésor Foundation), dr. Pita Verweij (also advisor) and by Charlotte Briand and Kévin Pineau (both warden in the Trésor reserve). After these presentations a tour through the Gardens was given.
Tours and visits in the reserve
Although in 2008 the reception building was not yet available in our reserve the guided visits over the weekends have continued as usual.
There were 245 participants in the 23 guided tours (twice a month); this is double the amount of 2007. In addition over the July holidays some 141 children have participated in a two-day program at Trésor.
Charlotte Briand has informed teachers in training about the extra-curricular program possibilities in the reserve and several classes have been welcomed from Cacao.
On 29 March and 4 April two nightly hikes have been organised, both with some 20 participants.
New reception building
Over the entire year the Association Trésor has been working on the preparations for the new reception building, the 'Maison de la Réserve'.
The assignment for building has been accepted by the Office National des
Forêts (ONF) in French-Guiana and the new building has been completed on 22 December.
Because the initial contractor went bankrupt the amount of ? 12,600 of the building costs has been lost. Through additional contributions by the Conseil Régional and the Foundation Trésor this loss has been more or less compensated. The Association has lodged a claim at the notary dealing with the bankruptcy.
Nameplates and information signs along the educational trail
The Botanical Gardens of Utrecht University have produced the new
nameplates (on aluminium) of plants and trees along the educational trail to replace the present signs which demand quite a lot of maintenance. In
2008 the first new nameplates have been placed along the trail and this project will be continued in.
2009.
Along the nature trail a shelter for visitors has been rebuilt and new information signs (the 'totem poless') have been placed.
In general
ANBI request approved
The Trésor Foundation has been an institution as intended in Article 24, section 2 of the Inheritance Law 1956 since 1996 and in July 2007 an application was submitted to the tax authorities to be considered an ANBI, an 'Algemeen Nut Beogende Instelling'. This was allowed by the Tax Authorities in September, which means that the Foundation is now allowed to receive donations and legacies exempted from gift tax and death duties.
Departure of Hans Pfeiffer
During a special board meeting on December 2008 we have said good-bye to ir. Hans Pfeiffer as an advisor to the Trésor Foundation. An interview with our highly esteemed colleague recently has been published in Trésor Nieuws.
Volunteers
With great dedication Eric Augusteijn (webmaster) and a number of certified translators our website (www.tresorrainforest.org) has been further developed and extended in 2008.
In addition to this the translators did a lot of work in translating documents which have enabled communication between the Trésor Foundation and the Association (and other French organisations) in a professional way.
As in previous years all administrative activities have been performed by Pipasi Jeurissen at an entirely voluntary basis. In addition to the administration of contributors she has mainly contributed to the preparations and organisation of meetings and mailings.
In 2008 the Utrechtse Biologen Vereniging has once again taken on mailing Trésor Nieuws.
The Association
The composition of the local Association Trésor, which manages the reserve in French-Guiana, has not changed in 2008.
The Association employed two full-time wardens: Charlotte Briand (on an temporary basis) and Kévin Pineau (in permanent employment since 1 March 2008). Olivier Tostain is the keeper.
Starting 1 February 2008 the office of the Association has been situated at 15 Cité Massel, Route de Montabo in Cayenne. This office is shared with several environmental organisations, enabling the sharing of housings costs. In January the WWF French Guiana has offered office space free of charge.
Financial account
More square meters have been adopted in 2008
During 2008 the Trésor Foundation and the Association Trésor have executed the projects and activities prepared in 2007. First the reception building. This has now been finished and put into use. It was financed with insurance money (some ? 34,000) and a gift of ? 10,000 from the Conservatoire du Littoral in French Guiana.
The permanent tropics resitant outdoor exposition of 'totem poles' explaining the ecosystems of the forest has been prefabricated in 2007 and installed along the nature trail in 2008. The The ? 8,500 for this had already been spent in 2007.
The Foundation has been happy with a steadily increasing number of contributors in 2008 as well, adopting square metres, with compared to 2007 a slowly rising amount of come ? 25,000 plus the usually single donation, which were very welcome for the work in the Trésor area.
In 2007 the WWF has donated the Foundation an amount of ? 42,000 to cover running costs of the Association and the expenses of the custodian. In 2008 this has actually been applied to these purposes.
An amount of ? 5,000 from this support has been spent on the redecorating of the new reception building in 2008.
The Greenchoice company (green energy) has given a single donation of ? 25,000 in 2008, also to be spent on the salaries of both wardens.
Including the reserve from 2007 becoming available and a number of smaller amounts the total income for 2008 amounts to ? 90,007.
As usual this year expenses were dominated by bank related costs (interest on the loan and accounts, banking costs) of ? 10,630 in total. The contributions to the Association to cover their general expenses (? 42,000), payments to the keeper (? 6,400) and the working visit to French Guiana (? 7,018).
The total expenses are ? 83,640
This leaves a positive result of ? 6,367.
Georgia de Castro Luiz Tinga is a volunteer for Trésor |
Getting acquainted with the Trésor Foundation
Volunteers' Day 2009
Georgia de Castro Luiz Tinga
Trésor's Volunteers' Day took place on Friday 24 July. On this occasion we also said goodbye to Hans Pfeiffer, ex-member of the board and consultant of Trésor. Members of the board, consultants and volunteers were present, and so was I.
I am Georgia de Castro Luiz Tinga, a new volunteer of Trésor. I am not completely new, for I started a number of months ago. Volunteers' Day was a good opportunity to get acquainted
with other volunteers and to get an impression of the people behind Trésor.
A boat trip through the 'Kromme Rijn' area had been organised in order to celebrate Volunteers' Day. It was a lovely experience until a 'tropical' shower surprised us. Fortunately, we were most warmly welcomed afterwards in the information centre 'De Kromme Rijn', where we had the opportunity to have a drink together and to enjoy some snacks from the organic kitchen.
A 'tropical' shower | | photo Eric Augusteijn |
I studied Biomedical Sciences at the University of Utrecht and decided to do some voluntary work for the time being until I had found employment. The choice for Trésor was easy as I would love to work in the environmental conservation and protection area. I am helping out with secretarial work such as communication with the donors and making contact with other organisations in order to broaden Trésor's network. In this way I hope to contribute to the preservation of the South-American rainforest, which is very near to my heart. I am from Brazilian origin. From an early age I have seen how rainforest disappears and how little is done to prevent this. Unfortunately, many people think that this is an irreversible process that can't be stopped. I believe that there are many possibilities as long as we are really prepared to dedicate ourselves to this end.
Depuis le début Aart de Lang est membre du
Comité d'Administration de la Fondation Trésor. | | photo Eric Augusteijn |
Interview avec Aart de Lang
Le Dr. Vogel a éveillé son amour
pour la nature
Eric Augusteijn
Aart de Lang est né en 1946 à Varsseveld, un village de l'Achterhoek (= «arrière-coin», une région de l'est des Pays-Bas). Dans sa jeunesse il ne s'intéressait pas encore à la nature. Par contre il se passionnait pour les arts, la poésie, la littérature. Après avoir fréquenté le lycée moderne il avait l'intention de poursuivre ses études à Amsterdam. Mais il n'en serait rien - il finit par accepter un emploi auprès de l'Office des Marques, l'instance qui s'occupe de la régistration de marques, logos, etc. Ses loisirs il les consacra entièrement à des activités religieuses.
La vie d'Aart a pris un grand tournant lorsqu'il rencontra en 1980 en Suisse le phytothérapeute Dr. Alfred Vogel, qui produisit sur lui une profonde impression.
Contrairement à Aart, Vogel, son ainé de 42 ans, n'avait fait qu'un avec la nature depuis son plus jeune âge. Il passa sa jeunesse à Aesch, tout près de Bâle. Là son père, le barbier du village et connaisseur de plantes médicinales, l'initia à l'action de toutes sortes de plantes. Il fallait que le petit Alfred les goûtât pour en découvrir l'effet sur le corps. Il y en avait qui lui donnaient envie de faire pipi, d'autres dissipaient un mal à la tête, d'autres encore étaient efficaces contre la diarrhée. De certaines plantes on faisait un cataplasme qu'on posait sur une blessure et qui en favorisait la guérison.
Aart a fait de nombreux voyages avec le Dr. Vogel, qui lui indiquait les caractéristiques spéciales des plantes médicinales. 'Regardez la forme de la tige, ou l'inflorescence. Goûte donc cette feuille ou cette racine. Les vaches, mangent-elles cette plante ou la laissent-elles de côté?' Observer, regarder, contempler, c'était sa devise. C'est par le Dr. Vogel que son amour pour la nature s'est éveillé.
Aart de Lang rencontre le docteur Vogel en Suisse.
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A l'âge de 34 ans, Aart commença à travailler chez Biohorma, l'entreprise du Dr. Vogel, producteur de remèdes naturels. Il y resterait 20 ans en tant que responsable du marketing de l'entreprise. Il s'en rendit compte que la communication ne tournait pas rond, elle s'était morcelée, différente dans les nombreux établissements dans le monde entier. Il s'engagea à développer une ligne commune, un style propre. Il en prit soin de faire traduire les discours du Dr. Vogel en beaucoup de langues, atteignant ainsi beaucoup de monde.
A part d'être son employeur, le Dr. Vogel était aussi un cher ami d'Aart.
Aart raconte: «J'ai toujours respecté beaucoup Alfred Vogel, et je le respecte toujours. Son véritable amour pour la nature, son respect pour la création et sa quête insatiable de, surtout, la valeur médicinale des plantes, m'ont énormément impressionné. Ensemble nous avons visité beaucoup d'endroits dans le monde et lors de ces voyages j'ai appris beaucoup de lui. Quand il est mort en 1996 à l'âge de 94 ans, j'ai perdu un bon ami.»
Son poste de marketing pour Biohorma a engendré chez Aart un désir conscient de signifier quelque chose pour la nature. Il parla avec le WWF, qui ne pouvait accueillir ses projets. Ensuite il entra en contact avec Vijko Lukkien et se lia étroitement à la création de la Fondation Trésor. C'est grâce à lui que Biohorma dans cette phase initiale donna une contribution généreuse de Fl. 500.000, contribuant ainsi à l'acquisition de la réserve Trésor.
Aart de Lang a été dès le début membre du Conseil d'Administration de la Fondation Trésor et il l'est toujours. Par son passé de communication et marketing, son dévouement est d'une valeur immense pour la Fondation. Lors de ses maintes visites de travail en Guyane française il y a mis à pied un ample réseau de personnes appartenant à des organismes privés et publics et par sa longue expérience et sa personnalité affable il a remporté des résultats inestimables.
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