The Kogi in de Sierra Nevada de Santa Martha in Colombia are the custodians of the ‘heart of the world’. Their sacred territory including themselves and their spiritual leaders –the Mamos- are increasingly under threat from outside pressures. Read the letter from Calixto Suarez, Mamo of the Kogi. We feel powerless, as our land now belongs […]
The Sacred Natural Sites Initiative regularly features “Conservation Experiences” of custodians, protected area managers, scientists and others. This post features the experiences of Ms. Sushmita Mandal and her colleagues at ATREE who have supported the Soliga with mapping their sacred natural sites in order to gain recognition of their local governance systems and forest stewardship practices. Ms. […]
Protected area managers, planners, local people and custodians in Portuguese speaking countries can now explore the Essential IUCN UNESCO Guidelines “Sacred Natural Sites, Guidelines for Protected Area Managers” in Portuguese. The Guidelines have been generously translated by professional translator Ms. Bruna Katletz from Brazil. “It’s hard to read and work on this subject without being […]
The Sacred Natural Sites Initiative regularly features “Conservation Experiences” of custodians, protected area managers, scientists and others. This post features the experiences of Professor Pei Shengi from the Kunming Institute of Botany and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Prof. Pei has worked as an ethno biologist and ethnographer in the Yunnan province of southern China […]
The Tansa Valley is only 60 km from Mumbai in the state of Maharahstra but is a site sacred to many as it hosts some of the hottest sulphur springs in Asia and many people come here to bathe and be healed. The indigenous tribal communities living here have a philosophy deeply rooted in Nature […]
The Altai mountains are known for their astounding and rare biodiversity as well as thier cultural heritage. The Golden Mountains of Altai have been nominated as a natural UNESCO World Heritage site that is currently under threat from a gas pipeline. In addition, snow leopard conservation programmes are not only popular with biologists but also […]
Call for Abstracts for Presentations on: SACRED NATURAL SITES: “An ancient Asian philosophy and practice with fundamental significance to protected areas”. Deadline for submission: 15th June, 2013 Introduction: IUCN WCPA Japan, the Biodiversity Network Japan and the Sacred Natural Sites Initiative in collaboration with the IUCN WCPA Specialist group on Cultural and Spiritual Values of […]
The Sacred Natural Sites Initiative regularly features “Conservation Experiences” of custodians, protected area managers, scientists and others. This post features an experience of Ms. Alison Ormsby PhD who currently works as an Associate Professor of Environmental Studies at Eckerd College in Florida, USA. When Allison is not teaching she focuses her research on on people-park […]
During April 2013 participatory video (PV) training was carried out in the town of San Andres Sacjabja in the Quiche district in Guatemala. The training was one part of a longer-term engagement of custodians of sacred sites in the district of Quiché with ‘Oxlajuj Ajpop’ (an indigenous Mayan organization) in collaboration with Sacred Natural Sites […]
The Sacred Natural Sites Initiative regularly features “Conservation Experiences” of custodians, protected area managers, scientists and others. This post features the experiences of Mr. Sébastien Luc Kamga-Kamdem PhD who currently works with the The Central African Protected Areas Network (RAPAC). Sébastien has been working on sacred natural sites in Bandjoun, West Cameroon and has identified the need […]
