RIGESA TO HOLD ITS 10TH ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION SEMINAR - Jul 10, 2010 - 9:58:00 AM

During the months of June and July, Rigesa Celulose Papel e Embalagens, one of the leaders in the Brazilian packaging sector, held the ¿10th Rigesa Environmental Education Seminar" in the cities it is active in ¿ Valinhos/SP, Blumenau and Três Barras/SC, Pacajus/CE, and Feira de Santana/BA, for around 700 primary school teachers from private, state and municipal schools.
This is a year for celebration. The 1st Rigesa Environmental Education Seminar was held ten years ago. It is also a special year - the International Year of Biodiversity, recently declared by the United Nations General Assembly with the aim of increasing public awareness of biodiversity conservation on a global scale.
¿Hence, the 10th Rigesa Environmental Education Seminar presents us with two opportunities: to celebrate and, at the same time, to acknowledge our responsibility in the conservation of biodiversity, as all our activities have consequences and everything that exists is connected¿, says Desirée Colucci Martini, corporate communications manager.
The theme of our 10th meeting is biodiversity and activities will be coordinated by the SuperEco Institute for Environmental Integration and the Development of Children and by SPVS ¿ the Society for Wildlife Research and Environmental Education, both non-governmental organizations specializing in environmental education.
As support material, educators participating in the event will be given the books, sponsored by Rigesa, ¿The Secrets of Biodiversity¿, by Edson Buscarate, ¿Researching Biodiversity ¿ Support Guide to Educators in Brazil¿, written by the organizations Conservation International, the Supereco Institute and WWF Brazil, and ¿The Guide to Biodiversity and its Connections¿, compiled by SPVS and which includes texts with different points of view on the exercise of critical spirit from several angles.
Schools taking part in the seminar have been receiving the Rigevida Environmental Education Journal on a monthly basis since the beginning of the year to help students with their activities. 40,000 students in the cities where Rigesa owns plants are currently benefitting from the material.
The event is part of the environmental education activities developed by the company with the aim of arousing the awareness of environmental values in its employees and communities in the vicinity of its plants.
Some figures:
4,500 teachers trained since 2001;
900 schools involved;
40,000 students receive the Rigevida journal every month;
200,000 children´s books distributed to schools and employees´ children.
About the book ¿Researching Biodiversity ¿ Support Guide for Educators in Brazil¿
The publication, an adaptation of Exploring Biodiversity, co-written by Conservation International and the WWF, contains 133 pages of texts facing up to Brazilian reality. Furthermore, it translates scientific content in an appealing and light-hearted manner as a way of encouraging educators and 11 to 14 year old children to research, analyze and acknowledge the importance of biodiversity in Brazil. Rigesa is the first company in the country to use the book in environmental education programs and believes that the activity will be fundamental in making the young audience aware of how important the effective and sustainable conservation of nature really is.