Download Project Presentation - Instituto Ecológica

Tropical Biodiversity Research Center - Ecotropical
Implementation:
Brazilian Energy Institute (Instituto Energias do Brasil)
Address: Rua Bandeira Paulista, 530
11º andar CEP: 04532-001 São Paulo – São Paulo, Brasil.
Contact: José Lopes Alves
e-mail: [email protected]
INSTITUTO ECOLÓGICA
Partners:
Ecológica Institute (Instituto Ecológica)
Address : 103 Sul, Rua SO 11, Conjunto 3,
Lote 28 CEP: 77015-034 Palmas – Tocantins - Brasil
Contact : Stefano Merlin
e-mail : [email protected]
Aveiro University (Universidade de Aveiro)
Address : Departamento de Biologia,
Campus Universitário de Santiago. 3810- 193
Aveiro, Portugal
Contact : Dr. Amadeu Soares
e-mail: [email protected]
Tocantins Catholic University (Faculdade Católica do
Tocantins)
Address : Av. Teotônio Segurado - 1402 Sul Cj. 01
Cep:77061-002 Palmas – Tocantins - Brasil
Contact : Luiz Antônio Hunold de Oliveira Damas
e-mail: [email protected]
Science and Technology Ministrty – Global Climate
Change General Coordination (Ministério da Ciência e
Tecnologia – Coordenação Geral de Mudanças Globais do
Clima)
Address : Esplanada dos Ministérios, Bloco E,
CEP: 70067-900, Brasília, DF
Contact : José Domingos Gonzales Miguez
Location:
The Ecotropical Center is situated in an area of ecosystem cerrado (a form
of savannah), 35 km from Palmas, the capital of the state Tocantins, and 9
km from the urban zone of Taquaruçu.
The Center will be made up of 2,000 hectares of cerrado with diverse
phytophysionomies.
Location: State of Tocantins
Photos of the Ecologica Farm
Mission:
Development
of
interdisciplinary
research
about
tropical
biodiversity with a focus on climate change, renewable energy and
Social Carbon among others, promoting exchange and interaction
between community, national and international researchers and
the public community.
Objectives:
• To implement a research center turned to the development of
research, training and education.
• To establish a records center and library concentrating all the
information generated in the region.
• To promote exchange and interaction between community,
national and international researchers and the public community.
• To develop practices which value the conservation and the use of
biodiversity.
• To maximise the effectiveness of conservation programmes by
the interaction of scientific data with sustainable development
policies, among others.
Context:
• State of Tocantins foundation: 1988, after the dismemberment
of the state of Goiás;
• Development of the state: agriculture and livestock expansion,
construction of new roads and the construction of the state
capital Palmas;
• Advance of economic activities: consequences on the regional
biodiversity with the degradation of the cerrado ecosystems
which, in their original composition, covered over 87% of the
Tocantins’ surface;
• Population distribution: result of a series of historical, political
and biogeographical factors, and determined by the predominant
forms of production;
• Agriculture, both traditional and modern, and its contribution
to the state and national economies directly influences the
degradation of natural resources and impacts upon biodiversity;
• Different forms of demographic expansion: uneven impact
upon regional biodiversity.
Ecotropical in the Cerrado Ecosystem:
 The cerrado is the second largest ecosystem in Brazil;
 Of the original 204 million hectares, 57% have already been
completely destroyed;
 Flora with more than 10,000 species of plants, of which 4,400
are unique to the region;
 837 species of birds;
161 species of mammals, of which nineteen are unique to the
region;
150 species of amphibians, of which 45 are unique to the
region;
120 species of reptiles, of which 45 are unique to the region;
 Just within the Distrito Federal, there exists 90 species of
termites, 1000 species of butterflies and 500 species of bees
and wasps;
 Approximately 6.5% of the cerrado is protected as parks and
reserves;
 High degree of uniqueness;
 The remaining 12.2% is covered by diverse forests.
The Importance of Biodiversity in the State of Tocantins:
• Cerrado: has a high level of biodiversity, significant number of unique species
and great agricultural potential, considered one of the last ecosystems capable
of supporting cereal production;
• Because of these characteristics, there is a high level of fragmentation and
degradation of these ecosystems;
• Four categories of ground cover are present on the Brazilian cerrado: ‘campo
sujo’ (‘dirty field’: low-level vegetation, consisting of grasses and herbs);
‘campo cerrado’ (‘savannah-field’: low-level vegetation with sporadic shrubs
and bushes); ‘cerrado’ (‘savannah’: shrubs, trees and low-level vegetation);
and ‘cerradão’ (‘thick savannah’: large trees growing very close together);
• Flora of Cerrado: the richest of the world’s savannahs, many plants of the
region are used locally as foods or medicines, sources of cork production,
fibers (grains), honey, oils, waxes, tannin, decoration and handcraft.
• The current biodiversity depends upon research and conservation strategies
which guarantee the preservation of areas where species can survive future
environmental changes and, above all, upon concrete and quantitative
knowledge of the richness of species and potential of Brazilian biodiversity.
Photos of the Tocantins’ cerrado
The Importance of Research for the Conservation of Biodiversity:
The planning of sustainable use and conservation of biodiversity depends on
ecological research and studies into the roles of organisms in self-managed
ecosystems.
Priority research into biodiversity management include analytical inventories of
biodiversity and the creation of maps of distribution for:
a) unique local species, endangered species, key species and migratory;
b) exotic species, invaders and problem-species;
c) domestic animals, economically important species and methods of
making environmental services more economically important.
Principal factors endangering the maintenance of biodiversity:
Loss of habitat (including procreation grounds, migration routes etc.);
Habitat degradation and ecological imbalance (achievements, business, roads, fire,
pollution, community settles);
Lack of know-how;
Hunting for food, incidental capture and human-animal conflicts;
Genetic problems, fragmentation and isolation of populations;
Shortage of protected areas;
Live capture for trade;
Invading species, illness, competition, hybridisation;
Climate changes;
High demographic growth;
Little value acknowledged to natural resources;
Agricultural specialisation;
Social inequality;
Judicial and institutional systems which promote unsustainable development and
exploitation.
The Importance of Research about Climate Change:
• The research center will serve as a place to disseminate researchs and
practices carried out by the Ecológica Institute with the goal of reducing the
effects of climate change.
• It will also be an opportunity for continuation and application of new studies:
•
Identification, analysis and evaluation of biomass calculus
methodologies and carbon projects, including development of
software to calculate biomass and evaluate carbon stocks.
•
Measurement of the carbon cycle in the different region’s types of
forests.
•
•
Climatic and environmental monitoring.
Analysis and evaluation of climatic changes and the reactions of the
ecosystems.
SOCIALCARBON:
• At the research center the methodology of SOCIALCARBON will be used and
taught, spreading the knowledge of it to other institutions through training
and courses.
• SOCIALCARBON research activities:
•
Development of methods to evaluate the social benefits derived
from projects of Clean Development Mechanism.
•
Identification of techniques, methods and indicators for the
climate change monitoring projects, which allow an approach to
study phenomena's related to time scales, space and magnitude,
for the improvement or implementation of environmental policies
and norms.
•
Identification and evaluation of alternative methods that brings
income increase for communities which advocate the conservation
of biodiversity and maintenance, reduction or sequestration of
carbon stocks.
•
Research of production systems focused on climate change
mitigation.
Biodiversity
Financial
Carbon
Human
The Importance of Establishing a Research Center:
• Cerrado: savannah with the biggest biodiversity in the world.
• Agricultural expansion is resulting in rapid destruction of the savannah
ecosystems.
 Studies reveal that climate effects are becoming more extreme in the
region.
• The region has great potential for maintenance and sequestration of
carbon.
• Research's can explain how changes in land use are affecting the global
climate and how global climate changes are affecting the forest.
• Accumulation of knowledge and creation of climatic and environmental
data banks on the ecosystems under pressure from human activity.
• Previous carbon research carried out by the Ecológica Institute have
already influenced the local economy: the ceramics sector is beginning to
change their energy sources.
• The development of research into this patrimony is an extremely important
step for the conservation of biodiversity and the mitigation of global climate
change.
Tropical Biodiversity Research Center - Ecotropical
Future Installations of
Ecotropical Center
Future Installations
of Ecotropical
Center
Side-Plan of the Ecotropical Center:
Bird’s-Eye Plan of the Ecotropical Centre: ? ?
Information:
Maria Amélia Maciel – [email protected]
Luiz Eduardo Leal – [email protected]
Tel.: +55 (63) 3215.1279