[La Tortuga Foundation]

We are a Non Governmental Organization (NGO), leaders in the ecologic field, in the scientific research, as well as in the conservation and protection of the marine, coastline and island ecosystems of the country.

Our activities are towards the citizens in order to encourage a treat with the nature and which can be appropriate, safe and continuous. Likewise, we want to create innovated and flexible financial programs that allow the participation of enterprises and citizens of all the sectors that are interested in the ecologic conditions improvement of our environment.

About Us

Our motive

Seas and oceans cover from around 70% of the earth’s surface and they are the place of more than 90% of the living biomass. As a result, they provide several resources and benefits to the mankind.

Nowadays, more than the half of the global population depends on the marine resources as main resource, a situation that will significantly increase in the following years. However, the marine ecosystems are the most fragile and the most affected spaces by the industrial and domestic activities made by the man on land.

The waters of Venezuela do not escape from this threat. The country has from around 860.000 Km2 of the Caribbean Sea, 314 islands and has a 2.813 km coastline in the north.

Within these spaces, the most important biochemical cycles of the country take place and they transform the sea of Venezuela in one of the richest biotic systems of the world. The sea is then, a strategic point for the food and economy security of the country.

Our motive

The scientist research and the use of the knowledge acquired in the implementation of the appropriate management programs and in the effective environmental education programs for the citizens of any sectors will allow the sustainable use of the marine resources. Moreover, it will allow a better understanding of the benefits for the present and future generations.

We implement methods for the conservation, rational use and for the ecologic, cultural, economic and social improvement.

Our motive

Our Achievements2005 – 2011

SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH

We have made more than 50 scientific expeditions in the coastlines and in the islands of the Anzoátegui, Sucre and Falcon states, as well as in the Federal Dependencies La Tortuga Island and the Islands of Píritu.

CLEANING EXPEDITIONS

We have made more than 71 ecologic activities where we have had the participation of more than 2.500 volunteers, among them: children, teenagers, and adults of the urban zones and of the coastline communities.

Average of the collected waste:

70 tons

Our Achievements2005 – 2011

EDUCATIONAL WORKSHOPS

We have made more than 63 workshops and different dynamic activities of environmental awareness.

Our Achievements

ActivitiesIn the scientific field:

• Research for the conservation and preservation of the marine spaces of Venezuela.

• Oceanography and biologist job descriptions.

• Creation and use of programs for the protection of the threaten species.

• Creation and use of education programs and appropriate management programs of the natural resources.

• Workshops for children, teenagers and adults in order to encourage the sustainable use of the natural resources and in order to have a better understanding of their benefits for the present and future generations.

• Cleaning workshops in the coastlines in order to create public awareness.

• Promotion of feasible environmental and political proposals for other institutions.

• Appropriate diffusion of contributions and scientific discoveries.

• Non official environmental program for the raise of public awareness: Ambientarrt

ActivitiesIn the education field:

Abientarrrt is a program that combines art, fashion, dance, music, ecology and education. It realizes research to adapt the present human consumption to environmental sustainable designs through strategic alliances with other sectors of the society. We have plastic artists, dancers, musicians who have been helped by a recognized group of scientists and technicians. Both groups join forces and creativity in order to develop mechanisms for the public awareness regarding the environmental issue by taking into account the conservation and the sustainable usage. As a result, we allow the participation of new systems and innovative pieces of art (garments and accessories mainly made of non recyclable waste). These activities have been made through special shows that have given great results regarding motivation, reflection and environmental analysis of the citizen.

The program uses its three principles (reduce, reuse and recycle) and it provides through artistic expressions the conservation message in order to express with an attractive universal language for those who are not interested in the environment. With this language, we explain the importance of using these principles that each one has as well as the responsibility that we must assume in the care and in the protection of the environment.

Since 2009, year of the creation of the program, more than 20 events (with positive results) have been held in Anzoátegui, Delta Amacuro, Miranda states and in the Venezuelan Capital District. In 2010, the program surpassed borders by presenting an international event in Madrid (Spain).

Objetivo Tierra [The Earth Goal] is a project created by Ambientarrrt and it is still in process. Through this project we join: college students, public and independent schools, municipal councils, city halls, private enterprises, volunteers, plastic artists, dancers, designers, models, artisans. We do this in order to create an environmental awareness and then, to use it for the solution of important demands in long and in medium term. For instance, to significantly reduce the sanitary landfills, as well as the extraction of raw material in our planet.

A reflection……

The picture that is in the upper part of the slide is very common in our daily lives.

The second picture is a heavenly beach. The last thing that we could think in a first visit is to find this scenery. None of the wastes showed in the picture were consumed in this island!

From “wastes” to “materials”

Every day, we obtain packing products that have different materials. We pay from them and we throw them without thinking about of the “bin”. As a result, we transform it into “wastes”. Our goal is to change this vision and by doing it, we can change our attitude and bring uncountable benefits.

We must take into account that the “bins” or “containers” are actually “materials” that can provide us benefits instead of greater damages to our life in the planet.

Every day we can decide the purpose of our own containers: wastes or materials? The future of our planet primarily depends on this decision.

TO BECOME AWARE OF OUR POWER AND OF OUR RESPONSIBILITY

To become aware of our power and of our responsibilityWe must recognize that as citizens and as a large group, we are the ones who make decisions and not the government, nor the big enterprises. We filed our roads with bottles and we filed our seas with large quantities of wastes and of sanitary landfills! We can chose and remove the governments, we can create a successful business with our support or destroy it with our rejection. The masses depend on us. Each positive or negative action has an effect in our planet!

Our life and the life of future generations are in danger. Are we going to still leave our decisions to the governments and to the big enterprises? Are we going to still believe that we cannot do anything by rejecting our own power? We are “the masses”. If we transform any package, bin or container into a “material”, we will almost achieving our great responsibility of protecting life in our planet. It is our responsibility; we cannot let the decisions to others!

REUSE WORKSHOPS

We begin with these workshops with the use of materials from containers that have been properly treated. We show some possible ways to use these resources at a lower price in order to create several products (toys, accessories, practical objects…). They will be used or sell and they will contribute to the economic welfare of the participants.

REUSE OF WORKSHOPS: CREATION OF TOYS

It is important that children see and experience the several uses that the packages have so that they can create things they like. Moreover, we make them to use their abilities, to develop their creativity and during the practice they solve any problem. It is impressive the solutions that these children can find once they know this world.

Through the program “Reciclar es educación” [Recycle implies education] we have the collaboration of enterprises such as Produvisa as well students of the Universidad de Oriente [East University], Universidad Santa María [Santa María University] that work as volunteers. We also have had the participation of the green organization Club de Leones de Puerto La Cruz, and the participation of public and independent schools, community councils and residential complexes. We have joined efforts to classify the wastes which will provide incomes and which will allow us to make repairs or to acquire the means that we need for the running of any institution, community council or residential complex. Therefore, we coordinate with this program the sale of their materials.

In the reuse workshops, we also have the participation of plastic artists and of people who have knowledge of different techniques. They show and help the audience to create different objects made of materials from empty bins for artistic or practical usage and the people not only learn, but have fun and change their vision of “wastes” as well.

Education and citizen participation

Diffusion

Since the last years, we have observed that people are not interested in receiving environmental messages through lectures, conferences and film festivals. In our activities, we have seen the attendance of the same audience.

Education and diffusion: Event Objetivo Tierra [The Earth Goal]

We achieve the interest of the people who are not interested in the activities through the music, dance or the fashion. We make our workshops in the plaza, then we show our performance and through them we touch their heart; it is not enough to know, we need to feel. Through this vision each one of us takes the responsibility as a citizen.

MARKETING

In our headquarters, we have a shopping store where you can find the materials made of bins or containers and the visitors are interested in them.

With the presentations of Objetivo Tierra[The Earth Goal], we have encouraged the interest of these types of materials.

If we observe any interest to these products, we will know that we are achieving our goal which is to create high quality products but that they have these qualities not only because they are made from wastes.

It is a project of our partner, the Zambulling Institute for the human transformation. The action of sowing trees and awareness has become part of the goals of Objetivo Tierra [The Earth Goal]. We consider that is important to implement as a habit to sow at least, a tree due to the fact that in our lives we consume many trees. With the sowing and the care of the trees, we create life, oxygen possibilities as well as a habitat for different species such as birds, ants, iguanas. We also create furniture, buildings, houses, rubbers…

Let’s calculate what could happen if each one of us sow and take care of at least one tree. Would we change the world? Would we have more oxygen or a more clean air? Would we decrease the temperature degree? Would we create cities with a better human awareness? Would there be more food, more buildings, more houses, and more books?

TREES FOR PEACE

Zambuling Institute for the Human

TransformationEconomy of the market• It does not

guarantees the welfare for all the citizens

• Negative impact:

- For the ecology- For mankind- For the environment

Solidarity Economy• Union of purposes

and interests• Collective identity• Public awareness

Dr. Alfredo Sfeir YounisEnvironmental economistPresident of the ZIHT

ZAMBULING INSTITUTE FOR THE HUMAN TRANSFORMATION

Dr. Alfredo Sfeir YounisEnvironmental economist

President of the ZIHT

PROPOSAL:• Collective human values.• A large ethic and integrity in any actions in

the public, private sectors and in the communities.

• To change the educational system– To raise the individual and collective

awareness

PROCESS:• To create a community vision in which solidarity

is the base.• To create professional frameworks in the media.• To create solidarity programs.• To create the landscape for a new life regarding

the values that we have mentioned before• To encourage dwelling, silence, pray,

contemplation, yoga and other methods in order to increase the collective awareness.

ZAMBULING INSTITUTE FOR THE HUMAN TRANSFORMATION

Dr. Alfredo Sfeir YounisEnvironmental economist

President of the ZIHT

Three programs:•Trees for peace•Plants for peace•Bees for peace

The moment of change has arrived!www.trees-4-peace.com

www.silentpeacemeditation.comwww.embajadadepaz.blogspot.com

patriciacastilloa1@gmail.com

Thank you!

"WHAT TO ONE IS IMPOSSIBLE,AMONG ALL IS POSSIBLE"