Fioravante Galvani Park
In 2014, the Fioravante Galvani Park celebrated its eighth anniversary and its successful contribution to the sustainable development and conservation of the cerrado biome in the state of Bahia. And we had plenty to celebrate: up until now, over 200,000 seedlings were produced and 14 animals were born in the conservationist area. In addition to that, thousands of students and teachers participated in Environmental Education projects.
Today, FGP is a highly valued space in the Luís Eduardo Magalhães area, thanks to its commitment to the conservation of the Brazilian cerrado and to the promotion of environmental education. Every year, local interest in the park and its activities grows, therefore, in order to strengthen its mission even more, in addition to current partnerships, FGP has just become a subsidiary organization, moving towards greater independence.
It was extremely rewarding to take a closer look at this project. Thanks to its professionalism and excellence, it even contributes to scientific research. Additionally, being able to see some of the animals rescued by the park is a very interesting experience. The conservation of the cerrado’s fauna and flora is essential, because despite its rich biodiversity, several species are endangered.
Looking for a friend
The Amigos do Cerrado Campaign continued throughout 2014, bearing excellent fruit for FGP. In addition to some already established partnerships, a new partner joined the project: Monsanto, in the diamond category, followed by Brasitrans, Interagrícola and TerraOeste, in the silver category, and Restaurante Vitória and Transcerrado, in the bronze category.
The company raised a total of 139,219.00 BRL. With these funds, we managed to make some relevant improvements, such as construction and renovation of animal cages, in addition to environmental education projects.
The partnership is another initiative of the company to support the conservation of the Brazilian cerrado, a fundamental biome for the success of responsible agribusiness in the country
All ears to the protection of the cerrado
Alô Cerrado! is an environmental education project that includes the production of radio shows to promote and guide the development of citizenship, addressing several environmental topics.
In 2014, it was supported by Cooproeste (Agricultural Cooperative of Western Bahia), Rádio Cultura 104.9 and the town’s environmental department (SEMA).
Produced by 20 students, between 10 and 14 years old, from Escola Municipal de Educação Integral São Francisco, in LEM, three shows were aired by Rádio Cultura, addressing topics chosen by the students themselves: Wildfires, Recycling and Pollution.
The results of this production can be seen here.
Many people have no access to it or have never heard of these environmental issues. So I think that Alô Cerrado is very important to raise awareness and provide people with relevant information.
Solid waste in focus
In order to sensitize the local population to the reduction and reuse of solid waste, the town’s environmental department held workshops with 446 teachers and 1,000 students, under the coordination of FGP.. In the training process, five educational games were produced to be delivered to all local schools.
The already traditional Environmental Education Workshops – held by FPG – continued throughout the year. These workshops were also carried out in partnership with the local environmental and education departments. Admissions were free and the participants received a certificate of their participation. In total, 26 teachers attended the workshops, with 14 theoretical and practical modules, 56 in-class hours and 34 complementary hours, with the application of what was learned in the workshops in actual classrooms.
What got my attention were the testimonials of parents saying their children had changed their attitude towards environmental conservation. I believe we were able to raise awareness among many students about the need to care for our planet.
Taking a closer look at the beauty of the cerrado
In 2014, we continued to offer guided visits, with 1,372 students from local schools and 680 visits open to the community. This project brought to the inhabitants of Luís Eduardo Magalhães and neighboring towns results like the opportunity to learn about the local fauna and flora, the beauty of the cerrado and its importance to the ecosystem. This project helps to tackle the widespread notion that this biome is less attractive or less valuable. It helps people understand the importance of their common habitat and strengthens their sense of community by creating a local identity in a region inhabited by people from all over Brazil.
79% of the participants in guided visits were so satisfied with the experience that they would recommend it to others. And 100% of the teachers who took their students to the park developed activities after the visit, as a strategy to deepen and evaluate the presented content.
In the Park’s anniversary, in September, we held our traditional “Day in the Park”, a specially planned visit for the children of Galvani employees. The project was attended by 16 children, who spent an afternoon in the Park with a biologist, a guide and six volunteers..
It is good to know there is a conservationist place in the region. And that people here are truly committed.
Places like the park enable us to deepen our knowledge in a concrete way.
New inhabitants in the Park
In 2014, the Breeding Ground kept an average of 30 animals of 10 species, with focus on mating, breeding and stock maintenance.
New maned-wolves and golden parakeets arrived in the park to mate with the individuals that were already in the breeding grounds.
Furthermore, we finished the ambiance of the area for howler monkeys and built a new space for rheas, pursuant to all standards prescribed by IBAMA for the maintenance of these animals in captivity.
In the media
Reforesting LEM with species from the cerrado
The production of seedlings in 2014 was especially oriented to the Galvani Loyalty Program. Over 5,000 seedlings were donated to the company’s clients, for them to reforest and recover degraded areas.
In total, in 2014, 5,876 seedlings produced at the FGP were shipped to the company’s clients.
