special report - dumac.org · rosa juliana mendoza quispe peru ... gonzalo cisternas lópez chile...

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22 Years

“Training Professionals from Latin America & the Caribbean”

Special Report

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Justification: Conservation and management of natural resources has accelerated dramatically throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, within the last few years. Through the establishment and strengthening of national, regional, state and local parks, reserves and other protected areas, these systems are seen as the key to sustaining biodiversity. Within these systems, wetlands are often regarded as the ¨hub¨, holding together the key elements needed for ecosystem health and biodiversity. Good wetland conservation depends on the quality of management in the surrounding uplands. While some conservation groups focus on specific habitat types, to be truly effective, land managers in Latin America must concern themselves with the entire system. It has become increasingly apparent that simply setting aside a protected area is not a guarantee of having achieved fundamental conservation or sustainable development goals; rather, it is just a first step. There are a lot of threats and pressures, all contributing to the degradation of the world’s natural protected areas. As to dealing with these threats, the lack of trained personnel to manage natural resources has been ranked by various authorities as one of the most critical problems facing conservation of Natural resources in Latin America and the Caribbean. Aware of this situation, the RESERVA Program was initiated during the second semester of 1989, with the participation and support of National and International institutions, where the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), US Forest Service, Department of Agriculture (USFSDA), Ducks Unlimited Inc, Ducks Unlimited de Mexico, A.C. (DUMAC) and the Secretariat of Environment, Natural Resources (SEMARNAT), represents the main partners that had supported the program for its development. Characteristics of the Program: RESERVA was established as one of the first internationally focused, hands-on protected area training program in Latin America and the Caribbean. The program’s principal function is to train professionals working on protected areas from throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, in the most fundamental practical skills necessary to manage wildlands effectively. Trainees in the program are already responsible for important protected areas throughout the region, working for Governmental or Non-Governmental organizations and Universities. There is one session per year, with 62 days in duration. And a scholarship for the participants attending the course is provided.

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Objectives: 1. To train protected area biologists, planners and managers from Latin

America and the Caribbean, in protected area management techniques by means of intensive hands-on experience.

2. To provide such training directly in Spanish, in a range of tropical or

subtropical habitat and within the context of Latin American and the Caribbean cultural, biological and economic conditions.

3. To improve the capabilities of protected area managers and consequently

protected area management through Latin America and the Caribbean. 4. To conserve biological diversity through sustained resources management

of protected areas and ecosystems generally. 5. To develop the institutional capacity within Latin America and the

Caribbean, to continue and expand professional training opportunities. 6. To develop support among Latin American and Caribbean professionals,

government officials and the public, for biological diversity conservation and sustained development of natural resources.

Program Structure: The program is divided in 15 different modules, as follows: 1. GIS 2. Conservation Biology 3. Management tools for the conservation of flora 4. Management tools for the conservation and management of wildlife 5. Biodiversity: valuation and measurement 6. Social involvement and community work. 7. Environmental Interpretation 8. Environmental education 9. Environmental impact 10. Public Use Areas 11. Conservation and management of wetlands 12. Forestry conservation and management 13. Environmental planning 14. Land Use Planning 15. Conflicts resolutions

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Each of the topics consists of a combination of classroom activities and related field exercises, in which course participants are asked to address and offer solutions to a particular resources management problem. The instruction of each of the different topic is being given by fifteen proven and experienced instructors. These professors are national and international precedence, working for eleven different Academic Institutions, Governmental and no Governmental Organizations. The instructor´s academic profile is: 13% Bachelor’s degree, 40% with a Master in Science degree and 47% with Ph.D. Participant’s selection is based on the following criteria: 1. Importance of the employee's protected area to biological diversity and

sustainable resources management. 2. Need for training the employee. 3. References as to the ability and potential of the candidate. 4. Likelihood that the participant will be able to effectively apply the skills

learned in the course. Results:

To date, 34 RESERVA courses have been completed. This far RESERVA has graduated 389 professionals, representing 22 Latin American and Caribbean countries, and one from the West African country of Guinea Bissau. The nationality of the participants that are being trained in the RESERVA program, correspond to 207 professionals from 8 countries of Central America (including Mexico), 152 professionals from 10 countries of South America, 30 from 4 Caribbean countries and one from Africa. 83% of the participants on the course, came representing Governmental Organizations at local and federal level, 13% from Non-Governmental Organizations and 4% from Universities. As we can see, the majority of the trained personnel in RESERVA, came representing the governments of each of the countries in LA. This situation remarks that the administration of natural resources is in their hand in the majority of the cases, and NGO’s play an important role but as cooperators and resources facilitators for the development of specific works within the areas. So in fact if we really want to affect changes on policy and decision

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making regarding conservation and management of natural resources, we need to guarantee the improvement of the professional skills, to improve management decisions, of those that are directly involved on the administration of the resources we want to protect, and that unfortunately are also those professionals with less expectation of training opportunities. Program´s Impact. 75% of the professionals graduated on RESERVA, are still related to conservation and management of natural resources. 15% of them had received important promotions in their jobs, providing better capacity for decision making at the institutions they represent. Most of the participants after RESERVA, returned to their countries with the intention to continue their professional training, throughout graduate programs to improve their professional capacity and their decision making. Must of the countries that has participated in RESERVA with graduates, depends on Oil production to support their own country income and unfortunately, because of this situation they are facing the potential treat of coastal wetlands loss with oil spill. Countries such as Mexico with 121 participants graduated; Venezuela with 16; Colombia with 22; Bolivia with 7; Chile with 21, are the most important countries in Latin America with Oil production and all of them in addition to those countries not enlisted, having as the back bone the National Protected Areas but with the great need of improving the professional capacity of those managing the natural areas remaining in their countries. This type of course is unique to Latin America and the potential benefits to preserve biological diversity resources in this region, are enormous. Employees trained in the skills taught in this course, will be able to more effectively administer the natural resources they oversee.

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Accomplishments: Duration of the Program: 22 years.

Number of Sessions: 34

Number of Participants Trained: 389

Participant´s Derivation: 23 countries, 22 from Latin America and the Caribbean and one from Africa.

Profession of Participants: Biologist (176), Agronomist (50), Forester (39), Wildlife Technician (34), Geographer (13), Ranger (8), Forestry Technician (20), Ecologist (11), Veterinarian (15), Communications Specialist (3), Administrator (3), Oceanographer (5), Archeologist (2) Others (10).

Gender: 143 women / 246 men.

Agencies and Organizations Represented among Trainees: 186 (108 government agencies / 69 non-governmental organizations / 9 universities).

Conservation Areas Benefited Trough Improved Professional Skills: More than 890.

RESERVA Headquarter and Other Facilities: John E. Walker Research Station in Celestun; Field Station at the Rio Lagartos Biosphere Reserve; National Marine Park Cozumel Reefs; Yum Balam Flora and Fauna Federal Protected Area.

Categories of Management and Science Training: 16.

Total Instructional Hours: 540.

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Countries Represented Among Trainees

(34 sessions / N=389)

20

2

7

13

22

23

12

5

14

13

14

1

2

10

132

13

10

10

19

1

22

7

17

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140

Argentina

Belize

Bolivia

Brazil

Chile

Colombia

Costa Rica

Cuba

Ecuador

El Salvador

Guatemala

Ginnea Bissau

Haiti

Honduras

Mexico

Nicaragua

Panama

Paraguay

Peru

Puerto Rico

Dominican Republic

Uruguay

Venezuela

Number of Participants

Co

un

trie

s

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34%

19%

39%

8%

Participants per Region

Mexico

Central America

South America

Caribbean

43%

7% 4% 14%

32%

Current labor responsability of ex-RESERVA graduates

Coordinator

Director

Other

Department Chief

Operation Technician

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Session 30 September to November 2009

Participants Name Country

Jean Emmanuel Vincent Haiti Miguel Enrique Laureano Nova Dominican Rep. Rosa Juliana Mendoza Quispe Peru Pedro José Taveras Alonzo Dominican Rep. Gabriela López Damián Mexico Lucero Jacqueline Calderón Montañez Mexico Artemisa Gaxiola Uzarraga Mexico José Santiago Manzanilla Castro Mexico María Clara Rubio Quiroga Argentina Anabella Carina Carp Gutiérrez Argentina Carmen Adriana Valera Bermejo Mexico José Luis Santibáñez Galarza Bolivia Daniel Espínola Jara Paraguay Ramiro Pereira Garbero Uruguay Ana Paulina Jiménez de Luna Mexico Claudio Alejandro Sales Sandoval Mexico

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Session 31 April to June 2010

Participants

Name Country

Alberto Morales Reyes Mexico

Eder Caceros Monzón El Salvador

Fernán Félix González Dominican Republic

Gabriela García Antonio Mexico

Gonzalo Cisternas López Chile

Javier García González Mexico

Jorge Gabriel Pineda Vecino Uruguay

José L. Menéndez Jiménez Mexico

Lester E. Ruiz López Guatemala

Marta Bravo Santos Bolivia / Spain

Nelly Herrera Ornelas Mexico

Ruffa Gómez Dominican Republic

Walter Oscanoa Osuquibamba Peru

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Participants

Name Country

Ana Antonia Carrasco de Ramos Dominican Republic

Gabriel Muñoz Salcedo México/Quintana Roo

Isai Hernández Santos México/Baja California Sur

Ivonne Ayde Rodríguez Villabona Colombia

Jaime Alberto Aguilar Linares El Salvador

Josefina Beltré Morillo Dominican Republic

Julio César del Corazón de Jesús Monguillot Argentina

Katia Ivonne Lemus Ramírez México/Michoacán

Manuel Alejandro Díaz Sotomayor Chile

Rita Mamani Condori Peru

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Session 33 April to June 2011

Participants

Name Country

María Paz Cóvolo Argentina

Pedro Antonio Salazar Humeres Chile

Claudia Pinzón Vanegas Colombia

Maykel Borges Rodríguez Cuba

Douglas Alexander Müller Gonález El Salvador

Roberto Alfonso Hernández Rivas El Salvador

Azucena del Carmen Luna Ordóñez Guatemala

Adán Arturo Aguilar Torres Honduras

Rosbel Rene Rodríguez Nuñez Honduras

Perla Xóchitl Silvestre Lara Mexico

Bertha Llamas Hernández Mexico

Nubia Elsa Núñez Vivas Mexico

Leonardo González Salazar Mexico

Lizzy Johnana Kanashiro Diaz Peru

Eduardo Rafael Rodríguez Santana Dominican Republic

Jesús del Rosario Pérez Dominican Republic

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Participants

Name Country

Alfredo Gálvez Ballón Peru

Anna Emylia Montalván Rivera Peru

Jose Luis Linares Rodriguez Cuba

Yuriet Ferrer Herrera Cuba

Jose Perez Rocha Dominican Republic

Mayra Josefina Peña Jerez Dominican Republic

Victor Delgado Del Rio Delgadillo Mexico

Oscar Manuel Sanchez Jimenez Mexico

Lucas Martin Gomez Rios Argentina

Leyrubi Aisquel Gonzalez Marchan Venezuela

Pilar de Maria Velasquez Jofre Guatemala

Evelyn Solano Brenes Costa Rica

Gerardo Josue Sandoval Costa Rica

Carmela Sanchez Garcia Mexico

Alberto Cruz Hernandez Mexico

Genaro Mondragon Contreras Mexico

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Acknowledgment letters

from graduates

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special report - dumac.org · rosa juliana mendoza quispe peru ... gonzalo cisternas lópez chile...

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