The capillarity of the work of CASA in the South American territory reaches concrete results in environmental conservation and has positive impact on the life of several communities.

Around 500 projects have been supported since 1993.

Between 2000-2006, around 250 projects were supported in all South America:

Amazon – 26 projects
Pantanal – 37
Cerrado – 36
Atlantic Forest – 38
Agriculture Frontier – 22
Coastal and Marine Area – 20
Urban Environment – 20
Energy and Infrastructure – 25
Capacities Building – 23

Bolstering of Democracy: expansion of voice and capacity to articulate in community groups and associations. CASA works not only with mechanisms of political participation but also with strategies that allow for critical influence; besides monitoring and questioning government policies. Supported entities propose and execute alternatives to existing policies.

The Miranda (MS) Artisan Bait Fishermen Association Empowerment Project allowed for not only the expansion of the association's center, but also for important articulations. The partnership established with the Regional Employment Board transformed Miranda into the first association of fishermen of Mato Grosso do Sul with autonomy to create unemployment insurance. One hundred fishermen obtained fishing insurance directly from the association in 2007-08. The president of the association, Liezé Xavier, already participated in public policy making discussions and committees in MS. After the support of CASA and the build up of projects, Liezé was invited to be an advisor for the Pantanal Biosphere Reserve Advisory Board.

Capacities building: birthing of new organizations and the permanence of important projects. The result is a real engagement of people in the solution of their own problems and community autonomy.

Madeira Vivo Institute (IMV): CASA noticed the importance of an organization in Rondônia with above average political and environmental reach and supported the creation of IMV. Today, the entity is a reference for the region, working in the defence of rivers and streams of the Amazon critically analyzing and questioning the logic behind the development that has been implemented in the region, while proposing more appropriate solutions, based in technical and scientific studies, informing the population and facilitating the local society's engagement in the discussion of issues that have a direct impact.

Institutional Build up: small investments lead to great results.

The purchase of a computer and other materials allowed for the institutional build up of the Luvardense Environmental Organization (OLUMA), located in Lucas do Rio Verde (MT), agricultural frontier region. Besides bringing awareness to the community through seminars on the socio-environmental problems of the region, Oluma established partnership with research entities and participates in important investigations on the impact that pesticide use in farming is causing to the environment and human health.

Gradual Consolidation for Changes: continuity, results of processes seen in organizations and their communities, territories, biomes and way of life.

CASA supported Vida Pantaneira, located in Porto Murtinha, in the border with Paraguay, for the first time in 2002. Bearing in mind the difficulties and the process of consolidation of a socio-environmental organization, CASA helped with the institutional development of the entity with its Capacities Building Program and small contributions in the following years.

Communication and Information Access: communicate, participate, conserve and develop.

The Ribeirinhos da Serra do Amolar and Barra do São Lourenço Association, located in the Pantanal (geographically isolated, the nearest city is 100km away), installed an antenna and a radio communicator in the community school. Now the association can establish contact with the city, receive information on meetings, requests support in emergency situations, such as health problems, etc. With the increase of articulation, the association was able to get Corumbá's Board of Education to renovate the school that had been closed for eight months due to precarious infrastructure in order to receive back the students.

Synergy and the articulation of local, regional and national action: alliances and collective victories.

The support of CASA for the creation of the Mangue Mar Bahia Network and for the institutional build up of the Cultural Movement Arte Mana, located in Caravelas (BA), explanded the reach and articulation of these organizations. They united forces with other institutions in the SOS Abrolhos Coalition, which was victorious in the fight for the creation of the Extravist Reserve (Resex) of Cassurubá. Resex bars the implementation of the development of a shrimp farm in Caravelas, that would cause a major environmental impact on the coastal populations.

Creation of new players

4 Cantos do Mundo, located in Belo Horizonte (MG), and the Gáucho Environmental Studies Institute of Porto Alegre, are examples of young NGOs that are supported by CASA. Institutions that execute innovative projects and develop alternatives for the urban environment: in the south, the movement "How to live well in the city" and in Minas Gerais, "Terra Viva Network." Besides sustainable practices, these youth perform and important political role through work in forums, collectives and socio-environmental associations.

You can support the expansion of these impacts. Contact us and contribute: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.