No forests no future

With the presence of more than forty religious leaders from the capital and thirty journalists and social communicators from the Amazon and the center of the country, IRI-Colombia officially launched “Without forests there is no future”, a national campaign on the relationship between tropical forests and water, which seeks to raise awareness about the essential role of these ecosystems in the water cycle and the urgency of protecting them to reduce climate emergencies and ensure the availability and quality of this vital liquid.

The event, held on August 26 at the Radisson Metrotel Hotel in Bogota, was attended by the biologist and Master of Science, Javier Eduardo Mendoza, who gave a lecture entitled “Beyond the trees: a sacred pact for Amazonian conservation”. In his speech, the expert in sustainable development, climate change, biodiversity conservation and land management, addressed the ecological, biological and cultural complexity of the Amazon, as well as the need to address its conservation from faith, understood as a feeling that drives action.

In addition, IRI-Colombia presented the campaign and shared with the audience some of the communication products that make up the campaign. In order to raise awareness about the importance of the Amazon rainforests to protect water and promote actions to help protect them, IRI-Colombia produced a series of educational and communication products, such as a booklet, a series of radio spots, which will be broadcast on ten radio stations in the Amazon and the country, and a large number of graphic and audiovisual pieces that will be disseminated through the social networks of the Initiative.

One of the main strategies of IRI-Colombia to give greater reach to this campaign and reach more and more people is to have the support of partner organizations that will contribute to the dissemination of the messages through their networks and communication channels.

It is for this reason that “Without forests there is no future” has the support of religious institutions such as the Pan-Amazonian Ecclesial Network (REPAM Colombia), Pastoral Social Caritas Colombiana, the Interreligious Council of Colombia (CIC), the Evangelical Confederation of Colombia (CEDECOL), the Central Baptist Church, the Syrian Orthodox Catholic Church of Antioch; educational institutions such as the Reformed University Corporation and its Regional School of Environmental Leadership, the Colombian Association of Geographers and the Colombian Association of Sanitary and Environmental Engineers; the Government of Putumayo and the Secretariat of Agriculture and Environment of Putumayo; the community newspaper Notas de Acción and the National Army radio station, Colombia Stereo. With the strong participation and commitment of the allied organizations, this campaign is expected to reach more than two million people in the country.

More than a communications campaign

In addition to the communications component, this campaign will articulate advocacy and territorial work in each of the 15 municipalities where the Initiative is present through its 47 local chapters.

In terms of advocacy, “No forests, no future” seeks to translate the campaign’s messages into institutional commitments, public policies and structural transformations in defense of tropical forests and the peoples who inhabit them, through spaces for dialogue with local, regional and national authorities, where programs and projects in favor of the protection of tropical forests and water are promoted; the accompaniment of regulatory initiatives related to these issues and the articulation with control agencies, which will ensure compliance with the State’s environmental commitments.

Regarding the development of the campaign in the Amazonian territory, “Without forests there is no future” will carry out a series of artistic interventions in the municipalities where the Initiative has local chapters. These events will be led by religious leaders, with the participation of children and young people from the region.

For their part, religious leaders will be the protagonists of this important campaign, because within the framework of the environmental pastoral action plans of each chapter, they will develop actions of visibility and advocacy, such as walks through the forests, interfaith meetings, municipal forums, masses, worship services and public events where the central messages of the campaign will be promoted.

With these actions, IRI-Colombia will ensure that the “Without Forests There is No Future” campaign is not only a national narrative, but a living force in the Amazon territories, driven by faith, environmental awareness and collective action.