Project encourages production of "jewels of the forest"

The completion of the project is the Rural Workers Union of Aripuanã and is sponsored by Petrobras Petrobras Environmental Program.

Enhancing the Indian handicrafts is an efficient way to stimulate the generation of income, encourage female leadership, and save the forest. That's what the project believes the Water Pact, held by the Union of Rural Workers of Aripuanã and sponsored by Petrobras Petrobras Environmental Program.      Developed in northwestern Mato Grosso, the project is helping to improve the visibility of the craft and show not only the aesthetic beauty but also the economic and cultural importance of these jewels of the forest for the people who produce them.
      One of the actions is the creation of the visual identity of the Jewel of the Forest, and worked by people Rikbaktsa Zoró. All production marketed by the Association of Indigenous People Zoró (APIZ) and the Association of Indigenous Women Rikbaktsa (AIMURIK) is replaced by a label stating its origin and cultural importance. "A consumer when purchasing the jewels of the forest must be aware that you are supporting a group of women in maintaining their culture, building a decent life and maintenance of the forest, which represents much more than stocks, represents the address of their spirits, the burial place of their dead and the legacy for the young and those not yet born, "explains Plácido Costa, coordinator of the project.
      In addition, the Water Pact is using the expertise gained by working with people of good forest practices in the management of the Brazil nut and latex for the jewels of the forest. One of the most significant actions is to map the entire production chain of the craft and the process of training in business management and the achievement of shared experiences. To this end, a group of women and Rikbaktsa Zoró will know the Association of Indigenous People Apurinã in Boca do Acre (PM), recognized internationally for the quality of their craftsmanship.
      "Our intention is to give conditions for women to structure the supply chain craft, getting fairer prices for these gems for this activity, performed by women, to regain its due importance," adds Costa. To get an idea of ​​its importance, the craft reached Rikbaktsa generate about one hundred thousand dollars per year, before the federal law prohibiting the sale of feather art. Currently, seed, fiber and other non-timber forest products handicraft generates 30 thousand dollars a year for women of ethnicity, distributed in 34 villages, but with great potential to increase that income.

      "The craft is an important source of income for the Indians Zoró, involving about 200 women," explains Rosimar Braga, manager of business APIZ. "The expectation is that with the creation of brand Jewelry Forest and advice throughout the project we can expand the marketing of these products," he adds.
      Crafts to be an almost exclusively female activity and involving all the villages can be an excellent ally in environmental management and planning, because it is also an activity for sustainable forest use. "By working with the grain, seeds and other non-timber forest products, they are generating income over the value of standing forests," says Costa. "The project Water Pact operates a market perspective, but on condition that a strategy to enforce what is worth to these people," he concludes.
Water Pact
The project Water Pact was born from the desire to rubber tappers, indigenous people and farmers of the northwest Amazon of Mato Grosso to build alternatives to the dominant model of occupation in this region. The efforts of the Water Pact actions are aimed at supporting the social organization of communities and for the management and marketing of forest products, such as the Brazil nut and native rubber tree latex. Partners include local and indigenous peoples Zoró Rikbaktsa, besides the rubber tappers of the Extractive Reserve Guariba - Roosevelt. The completion of the project is the Rural Workers Union of Aripuanã and is sponsored by Petrobras Petrobras Environmental Program.
Source: http://www.topnews.com.br/noticias_ver.php?id=10728