Venezuela Recognized for Protecting the Amazon

Venezuela is the nation with the 10th-largest amount of biodiversity in the world. Efforts to protect that biodiversity are highlighted in a new study by RAISG, or La Red Amazónica de Información Socioambiental Georreferenciada.

According to the study, Venezuela has the second-highest proportion of its Amazon region protected. The Amazonian basin covers an astounding 3 million square miles in South America, overlapping several different countries and encompassing a population of perhaps 33 million. Venezuela has already protected 71.5% of its share — second only to Ecuador’s 79.7%, and far ahead of Colombia, Brazil, and Peru.

RAISG measured Indigenous territory and other protected lands, which are generally the best conserved. Venezuela has 43 national parks. A respect for nature is enshrined in the constitution of Venezuela under a chapter that guarantees all citizens the right to a safe and healthy environment.

Since the Amazon Rainforest is often called the “lungs” of South America, we can breathe a little easier thanks to Venezuela.

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Venezuela Participates in NY Indigenous Film Fest

David Hernández-Palmar, a young Venezuelan man from the Wayuu Indigenous community, will be in New York City this Saturday to help present a documentary at the 30th Annual Native American Film and Video Festival.

“Owners of the Water: Conflict and Collaboration over Rivers” was created by Hernández-Palmar together with Caimi Waiassé (a Brazilian Xavante man) and U.S. Anthropologist Laura R. Graham. It chronicles an international campaign to protect Rio das Mortes River Basin in Brazil, a vital resource for the Xavante community that was threatened by soya production and related deforestation. The Xavante blocked a national highway to demand the protection of the basin.

To help tell the story of the Xavante’s struggle, Venezuela’s David Hernández-Palmar lent his talents as an up-and-coming documentarian. For more information about this and other films at the Native American Film and Video Festival, click here.

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New Sisters: Carora and Milwaukee

Today there was an exciting development in public diplomacy that brought two communities together: the Venezuelan city of Carora and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. These two places have teamed up to build connections through cultural, educational, and economic activities. Notably, it is the first Sister City agreement made between the U.S. and Venezuela in ten years.

The Sister City program allows citizens from the two countries to unite on a local level, which helps build cross-cultural understanding. It can also add a human element to political realities.

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said:

Our leaders of our representative countries have not had the warmest relations and that makes what we are doing today more important. If leaders don’t see eye to eye that doesn’t keep individuals from working together. Political leaders come and go, but at the local, grass-roots level there’s still the ability as human beings for us to make the world better.

City officials are looking forward to sharing ideas on issues such as water, dairy production and coffee exchange. Carora is creating a welcome house for visitors from Milwaukee where they can learn about the city’s rich heritage.  It is in fact one of the oldest colonial cities on the South American continent, founded for the first time in 1569.

Considering the cold temperatures in Wisconsin, Milwaukee’s new sister will likely attract her share of snowbirds next winter!

Stay tuned for updates.

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Venezuela Defeats United States in Miami

Venezuela again defeated the US this week in the final game of the second round of the World Baseball Classic. The US made several errors and had some injured players as well. Though the Venezuelans seem to be holding up better, both teams advanced to the finals.

During the rainy game, Venezuela pulled ahead early on, scoring six runs in the second inning.  Despite being delayed 70 minutes and playing in less than favorable conditions, la patria querida emerged victorious once again!

Keep watching for the final round, which begins on Saturday, March 21st.

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Film Shows Struggle for Progress in Venezuela’s “Colonia Tovar”

Debuting soon is a new documentary about Colonia Tovar, the German settlement that lies just 60 kilometers outside of Caracas, but is culturally much further removed. The community, a small but well-touristed village of perhaps 6,000 people, was founded in 1840 by the intrepid Italian geographer Agostino Codazzi.

Colonia Tovar provides the setting for “María y el nuevo mundo” (Maria and the New World), the first full-length film from Venezuelan director George Walker Torres. It tells the story of a middle-aged woman who struggles to survive on a garbage dump and dreams of being reunited with her daughter. A parallel is drawn between her search to create a better life and that of the initial founders of the town.

The documentary is promoted by Venezuela’s National Film Board, or Centro Nacional Autónomo de Cinematografía (CNAC). Read more in Spanish. Check back here to watch the trailer once it’s available.

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Venezuelan Woman Promotes Intercultural Education

Intercultural education will soon become a reality in Venezuela, if Professor Angela Diaz has anything to do with it.

She spoke at at a public event today in Washington sponsored by TransAfrica Forum. Diaz has been making her way around the U.S. capital,  speaking at Howard University and meeting Members of Congress to discuss the Afro-Venezuelan experience.

Diaz is a member of the Network of Afro-Venezuelan Organizations (La Red de Organizaciones Afrovenezolanas), has worked tirelessly over the past decade to help create a more inclusive education system. Like the U.S., Afro-descendants and Indigenous peoples in Venezuela have been too often distorted or omitted from public school curricula. Due to the work of people like Diaz, Venezuelan students will learn about all the ethnic groups that built the South American continent.

The new inclusive curriculum has been implemented in 17 states so far. Part of the process involves inviting community elders into the schools to teach.  In one school, grandparents taught students how to make a fish recipe, which is stuffed in a plantain leaf. Fish is a vital resource for residents along the Caribbean coast, many of whom identify as Afro-Venezuelan. Along with the recipe, the children learned about history, culture, art, and the environment. Sharing ancestral knowledge is the key to transmitting what has been left out of the history books.

Diaz emphasized that students are inspired when they can see themselves and their communities represented in their lessons. See more of Professor Diaz’s work with Fundación Curduvare.

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Venezuela Defeats US in World Baseball Classic

This year’s World Baseball Classic has been very exciting. Venezuela was back on top of its game yesterday, defeating the U.S. 5-3 to win pool C after losing to the U.S. 15-6 in a previous game. Their roster includes MLB stars like Bobby Abreu, Endy Chavez, and Francisco Rodriguez.

Venezuela moves on Saturday to play the Netherlands, which has been a proven to be a wild card this season, twice defeating the powerhouse Dominican team.

Keep watching, and keep your fingers crossed for the patria querida!

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Venezuelan Women Make History and Textiles

Women make history every day, and the women of Venezuela are doing so by cultivating a community-based economic model. They are embarking on new paths to autonomy within an historic social movement that is improving the lives of millions through “social missiones” that deliver new opportunities.

Government-funded programs such as Madres del Barrio (or “Mothers of the Neighborhood”) promote  social inclusion and community action. Madres del Barrio gives women the tools to succeed personally as well as economically by offering education, training, and interest-free loans. These tools have been invaluable for women, many of whom had never before worked outside the home.

The Guardian Weekly showcases the personal story of one Caracas woman whose participation in Madres del Barrio led her to found the successful Guarayrapana Textile Cooperative. Yovita Vera had this to say about her experience:

It takes a lot of willpower to keep the cooperative working, but we couldn’t have done it without the support from Madres del Barrio. I feel like this government has finally given women the status they deserve. In the barrios, most of the families are headed by women with little or no support from men, so it makes sense for them to be in control of the finances.

As we celebrate Women’s History Month, Madres del Barrio deserves a round of applause!

Check out this video about Madres del Barrio in Spanish.

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Venezuela’s Santana Ready to Get in the Game

Johan Santana, the star pitcher for the Mets who hails from Venezuela, says that despite elbow problems he will be ready for Spring training on Thursday and wants to pitch opening day on April 6th.

“Right now, I feel pretty good, and I felt like I could get in a game,” he told the New York Daily News. This is despite the fact that he did not pitch in the recent World Baseball Classic, disappointing Venezuelans.

Santana told Newsday: “I haven’t skipped anything. Just staying with the plan. Hopefully whenever it’s the time, the right time, to get on the field, we’ll do it. We’ll get on the mound. But as of right now, there’s no reason to have that competition mind-set. It’s just about getting ready for Opening Day.”

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Venezuela Celebrates International Women’s Day

Yesterday, March 8th, was recognized by countries around the world as International Women’s Day. In Venezuela, there were many achievements to celebrate as well as challenges ahead.

In 2007, the Law on the Right of Women to a Life Free from Violence was passed. It stipulates that 23 women’s shelters must be created throughout the country, but only two have been opened so far, according to an IPS article. Many women  rely on the “rehabilitation centers” of the government-funded social mission known as “Negra Hipólita,” which provides services to those in situations of critical poverty. A new National Institute for Women was also created recently. Its initiatives include the expansion of a helpline for women that now provides 24-hour service.

Last week, the head of the gender team of the United Nations Development Programme, Winnie Byanyima (pictured here), was visiting Venezuela. In a Spanish-language interview, Ms. Bayanyima said “the [2007] law promulgated by the Venezuelan government is very important, but it must be put into practice and monitored.”

The UN, together with Spanish International Cooperation Agency, held seminars in Caracas that allowed participants from Spain to share with Venezuelans their experiences with setting up a three-tiered system of services for women who face violence. The seminars were attended by officials from the government’s National Institute of Women as well as police and citizens.

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Salsa Caraqueña at “El Maní” – Worth the Price of the Flight

No visit to Venezuela is complete without a visit to Caracas, and no visit to Caracas is complete without Saturday night at El Maní es Así, a veritable institution of Latin American salsa.

Called El Maní (the peanut) for short, it is simply one of the greatest salsa clubs on planet earth. Located in the heart of Caracas in Sabana Grande, nearly every taxi driver can take you there. It’s Metro accessible, but you’ll need to take a cab back, since the Metro shuts down before the party does.

Admission to El Maní is usually free, and the crowd is diverse and friendly. Get there early to nab a table. The caraqueño nightlife custom is to purchase a bottle of liquor (with mixers) or mini keg of beer to reserve your table for the night.  The waitstaff is attentive and quick, so tip well! The place is full by 9 pm, but the dance floor always has room for another couple.

Top Latin American salsa bands perform there every weekend, and even party goers without skills will be tempted (and invited!) to dance.  Don’t worry — someone will offer to teach you the steps. The rhythm is hard to fight, the rum is superb, and the house lights will come on before you know it.

El Maní is a great place to see the real Caracas, and a wonderful place to fall in love — with Venezuela, of course!

Check out this great photo montage of the club with music by salsa legend “la voz” Héctor Lavoe.

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