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Jane Goodall’s Message

6/9/11

Once again Spain had the honor to welcome Jane Goodall in Madrid last Thursday, May 26th to celebrate the International Year of Forests.



After a short presentation from representatives from the Ministry of Environment, and Rural and Marine Areas, the public much enjoyed watching a short clip from the documentary “Jane’s Journey.” In the short selection of the film Dr. Jane walked through Gombe, the chimpanzee reserve in Tanzania where so long ago she began her research, and sat with the chimpanzees. Everything was quiet in the forest. Then suddenly an angry Frodo (a male adult chimp) ran by quickly aggressively making noise, shaking plants and trees and almost hit Dr. Jane in the head. Jane stayed calm and whispered, “Someone is misbehaving.”

In Madrid, before more than 200 people, Dr. Goodall began her speech by reminding us that chimpanzees, with a genetic make-up only 1.5% different from us humans, are so similar to us that we should consider them the ambassadors of the Animal Kingdom. The chimps, like us, give each other hugs and kisses and can also sometimes swagger around arrogantly and throw rocks. Like us, chimpanzees can show love and compassion as well as become angry and be aggressive.



The big difference between humans and chimpanzees is the rapid development of our intellect. Dr. Goodall said that we cannot compare our intellect with that of the chimps and asked the question: “If we are the most intelligent beings on the planet, and we are, then why are we destroying it?”

This question led the way to speaking about deforestation y how the forest round Gombe has changed since Dr.Goodall began her studies more than 50 years ago. She spoke of the deforestation that is happening and how the IJG works with the people of Tanzania not only in protecting the forest and the chimps’ habitat but also to tackle the community’s problems from a holistic point of view with the Take Care Program. With this project the IJG thinks about the communities, Works with them, listens to their needs, and helps them find solutions.



At the end of the event Dr.Jane presented with much delight the Roots & Shoots Group “El Cuarto Hocico” with an award for their participation in the campaign Ecoiniciativas of the program  BioDiverCiudad. HERE is the wonderful Web page of this group of young people dedicated to protecting pets and fighting against animal abuse and neglect. Congratulations kids for a job well done!

It was an evening full of inspiration and happiness. Dr.Jane’s messages, always full of hope and with a strong belief in the power of youth, touched the hearts of everyone. We hope she comes back to visit Spain again very soon. And while we’re waiting…Let’s help the planet, people and animals!

Celebrate with Jane the International Year of Forests!

5/18/11



The Minister of Environment, Land and Marine Areas, Rosa Aguilar, invites you to the event "For a Sustainable Forest" to commemorate the International Year of Forests. The event will include a conference by primatologist Jane Goodall, Dame of the British Empire and will be led by Juan Ramón Lucas, director of the program "En días como hoy," of Radio Nacional de España. 

You are all invited to listen to Jane Goodall speak in the Sala Goya of the Real Fábrica de Tapices in Madrid, the 26th of May at 7:00PM. 



To attend the event you must sign up HERE !

Hope to see you soon!

It’s spring and the bees need us!

5/5/11

Are the flowers blooming? Do the birds wake you up in the morning? Is it time to get out the summer clothes?

IT'S SPRING!



This spring we have an idea for you: plant some flowers on your balcony, in your patio or in the yard…The bees need them!



A recent study funded by the United Nations has just announced that bees across the world are in danger, which means we too may also be in danger. Bees pollinate more then 70% of the plants that give us food (among other pollinators like butterflies and birds.)

In many parts of the world bees colonies are suffering from a sickness known as Colony Collapse Disorder as are threatened by insecticides as well as air pollution.



We must remember that bees give us an irreplaceable service of pollination that is worth billions of Euros!

WHAT CAN YOU DO?



Plant on the balcony, in the patio or in the yard a tree that flowers in spring time, some Rosemary or lavender, flowers like daisies, or herbs such as mint, basil or chives.

Buy at least one organically grown product every time you shop. You’ll be supporting farmers who avoid using insecticides and chemical substances and instead use natural growing methods that don’t harm the bees.

Go to school by bus, metro or on foot! Air pollution also affects bees. They need clean, pure air in order to detect scents from far away.

Have some more ideas on how to help the bees?

Share it here with us!

Turn off the lights and turn on the planet!

3/23/11

Celebrate Earth Hour, the largest global movement to fight climate change, this Saturday at 8:30pm.


with your Roots&Shoots group
or
with friends
or 
with the whole family
either 
at home
or
on the street

Turn off the lights and turn on the planet!

A BIG WARM WELCOME to the new Roots&Shoots group: "EL CUARTO HOCICO"

3/3/11

We are pleased to present a new group of Roots&Shoots Spain:


This amazing group of 12 boys and girls are in 4th grade in the town of Muel in Zaragoza, Spain has decided to create a virtual animal shelter.

What a great idea!

Their magnificent BLOG is not only full of concrete and practical advice so everyone can take better care of animals, the group also shares true stories and fun fact about all kids of animals.

The group!

For example, if you want to know what to do if you find an animal HERE they explain the difference between a an animal pound and an animal shelter. And in the "Animal facts" section we learned that the elephant is the only animal with four knees that can't jump :-0 HERE is more fun trivia from the animal kingdom.

But perhaps the best part of this virtual animal shelter called the Cuarto Hocico are the true stories that you find in the section "Stories that happened to us." Do you want to learn about SEBAS THE STRAY DOG? Well HERE Raúl, ALejandro and Pilar tell the story...you're going to love it and there is so much to read, learn and enjoy!

Welcome "EL CUARTO HOCICO" to Roots&Shoots of the Jane Goodall Institute Spain!

2/17/11

Marc Bekoff , leader of a Roots&Shoots group and personal friend of Jane, has written in collaboration with the University of Colorado Dever's Children Youth and Environments project a new book about children and animals.


There are drawings and pictures of R&S groups from all over the world...


It also speaks of a variety of R&S projects....Here is R&S Spain with Professor Roots!


And the book includes the Movilízate por la selva campaign! Look at our friends from R&S group Lwiro in the Democratic Republic of Congo where part of the money raised in the campaign goes...



The best thing about the book is that everyone can download it and read it for free HERE.

If you would also like to read more work by Marc Bekoff, he also wrote a book with Jane Goodall: The Ten Trusts.



A Warm Welcome to R&S Heri Kwetu

2/9/11

From Bukavu, located in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo, comes news from the R&S group of Heri Kwetu.


Heri Kwetu is a center that takes in and offers education to handicap children and youth. It was created by Teresa Sáez more than 30 years ago in one of the poorest neighborhoods in the capital Kivu Sur. Teresa, from Spain and part of the religious order Compañía de María, started this center to offer an opportunity to those who are the most in need and marginalizaed. Today Heri Kwetu is still open and continues to grow.

In July 2010 after learning about the work of the R&S group Lwiro (created by Laia Dotras of the Jane Goodall Institute Spain) Teresa proposed the idea of starting a R&S group to the boys and girls of Heri Kwetu. Over the summer the group met a number of times to see what were the environmental needs and problems in their area. 


They decided that something had to be done about the extensive erosion on the hillsides of their neighborhood. Trees had been cut to make room for houses made of mud and metal. The group started out by informing neighbors and involving neighborhood representatives by letting them know the activities they planned to develop. The R&S group Heri Kwetu got to work on the poorly eroded area, cleaning it up and preparing it for a nursery for trees. Moreover, instead of using plastic bags to contain the seedlings, they used bags made of dried banana leaves. Today the group is taking care of the small trees and, when they’re large enough, the trees will be transplanted and their roots will help retain the soil.


At the moment the Roots&Shoots group at Heri Kwetu has 25 girls and 34 boys as members. They get together on Sundays and review their projects and other proposals that they can do to improve their surroundings. Worried by the large amount of plastic bags that are thrown into the streets, the group has started a campaign asking neighbors to give their bags to the R&S group instead of throwing them away into the streets. R&S Heri Kwetu then cuts up the plastic bags into strips to crochet them into beautiful bags which are longer lasting y more useful than the ones that invade the streets of Kadutu. This way they keep the neighborhood clean and give a new use to a once polluting object.

R&S Heri Kwetu hopes to meet with R&S Lwiro to exchange ideas and experiences and bring together their energy to make their communities a better place to live. Both have received material and support from Roots&Shoots groups in Spain and the Jane Goodall Institute. These groups are a great example of effort, commitment and passion, working in their area with few resources but an enormous desire to make the world a better place.

Welcome!

Congratulations R&S Madrid!

2/2/11

Jane Goodall distinguishes Spain’s most active R&S Group of the year.


Jane, in her last visit to Spain in November, saved a special moment during her speech at the National Library (Madrid, Spain) to present an award for extraordinary work in a number of activities to the group Roots&Shoots Madrid.

The volunteer group of R&S Madrid, led and coordinated by Marisa Mariñán and Diego Rivera, has more than 20 members from an array of different backgrounds including environmental sciences, biology and psychology.

Three years ago they formed their group to promote Dr. Goodall’s philosophy through workshops and presentations in different institutions such as schools, hospitals and universities. Along with the many other activities this group organizes to support the Jane Goodall Institute Spain, R&S Madrid has become our most active group in Spain.

The energy of all the group’s members and the unbeatable motivation of Marisa and Diego are a fine example to many of the other volunteers at the IJGE. At the moment this group is working with the program BioDiverCiudad and the cell phone recycling program Movilízate por la selva in addition to holding monthly activities for hospitalized students.

The entire team of R&S Spain and all the R&S Groups in Spain join Jane in this special recognition…

Congratulations!

Want to learn more about the R&S Madrid group?
Visit their blog:

R&S Group “Movilízate por la Selva”

1/26/11

It is an honor for our R&S Group to be one of the first to participate in the Roots and Shoots Spain blog y we would like to take the opportunity to wish the blog and all the followers the best of luck!

Distributed among Barcelona, Madrid, Álava, Cantabria and A Coruña, we are currently a group of members (all volunteers). We are working to beat the successful results of the 2010 campaign from the IJGE “Movilízate por la selva” (that’s where we got our name) with a the help of a computer, an Internet connection and lots of enthusiasm.


We handle the design aspects of the promotional material, update the web page, translate texts, maintain contact with donors, thank participates through the Chimpamigos program, etc. And you too can help us in many different ways exceed the 6,500 cell phones that were collected for recycling in 2010. You can simply send us an e-mail and we’d be happy to help you find the best way to participate that fits into your own schedule and interests.

The funds received, thanks to the recycling of these cell phones, is destined to support projects for the development of communities in the Congo area, educational programs and conservation in the Republic of Congo (for example the Chimpanzee Rescue Center Tchimpounga.

Visit our web page to learn more about the campaign (www.movilizateporlaselva.org) or contact us directly (info@movilizateporlaselva.org).

Help us make a difference!

HAPPY 2011! International Year of Forests

1/2/11

Did you know that forests are home to 80% of the biodiversity found on land?
And that 1.6 billion people earn their livelihoods from forests?

Foto por Manuel Mata Oliver

This is why the United Nations has declared this year the International Year of Forests and they hope to raise awareness of the conservation and sustainable management and development of the “lungs” of our magnificent planet.

Everyone here at Jane Goodall's Roots&Shoots Spain knows that the key to protecting animals (like the chimpanzees ;-) is in protecting their habitats. So here are some ideas so you can be a part of forest conservation around the world:
  • Use notebooks made of recycled paper and write on both sides of the paper before putting it into the recycling bin.
  • Search for eco-labels from sustainably managed forests when buying furniture, paper or wood.
  • Try being a vegetarian at least one day a week. According to the UN the meat industry is one of the leading causes of forest destruction and loss of biodiversity in the world.
  • Visit a forest. Experience biodiversity and breath in the fresh air of you closest ecosystem.
  • Share with your community just how important forests are. You can set up a recycling campaign, book exchange, organize a guided visit to your closest forest and MUCH MORE!



Have ideas for activities to protect and preserve forests?
Has your R&S Group done something in the past to help protect Gombe or other forests?
Share it with us! We want to know more!
 

roots@janegoodall.es

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Every individual is important. Each one of us can make a difference...every day.
..........................................-Jane Goodall

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