WWF (World Wildlife Fund) Guianas is an international conservation NGO, part of the WWF global network.

Mission and objectives

WWF's main mission is "to stop the degradation of the planet's natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature." The regional office of WWF Guianas is also involved in a plurality of site specific objectives, often in partnership with civil society organizations and government institutions such as

Conservation International Conservation International (CI) is an American nonprofit environmental organization headquartered in Crystal City, Virginia, in Arlington County, Virginia. CI's work focuses on science, policy and partnership with businesses, governments and co ...

and Iwokrama International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development. These range from the protection and management of ecological landscapes, to educational and awareness campaigns on

climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...

biodiversity Biodiversity is the variability of life, life on Earth. It can be measured on various levels. There is for example genetic variability, species diversity, ecosystem diversity and Phylogenetics, phylogenetic diversity. Diversity is not distribut ...

and conservation.

Notable programs and initiatives

Earth Hour Earth Hour is a worldwide movement organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature, World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The event is held annually, encouraging the individuals, communities, and businesses to give an hour for Earth, and additionally marked ...

* Protected Areas and Sound Land use Planning * Payment for Ecosystem Services * Gold Mining Pollution Abatement * Marine Turtle Conservation * Sustainable fisheries

The Guianas' conservation significance

The three

Guianas The Guianas, also spelled Guyanas or Guayanas, are a geographical region in north-eastern South America. Strictly, the term refers to the three Guianas: Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana, formerly British Guiana, British, Surinam (Dutch colo ...

(

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

Suriname Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...

and

French Guiana French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west ...

) have between 80 and 98% pristine forest cover and are part of the complex ecosystem of The

Guiana Shield The Guiana Shield (; ; ; ) is one of the three cratons of the South American Plate. It is a 1.7 billion-year-old Precambrian geological formation in northeast South America that forms a portion of the northern coast. The higher elevations on ...

freshwater ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

, which provides 15% of the world's freshwater reserves. The forests, wetlands, savannah, waters and

make the Guiana Shield "essential to enriching and replenishing the world's biodiversity and, consequently, essential to the planet's survival" as Brigadier David Granger - President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana pointed out during his speech at the Opening Ceremony of the IVth International Congress on Biodiversity of the Guiana Shield. It is also the home of incredible wildlife creatures such as

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

anteater Anteaters are the four extant mammal species in the suborder Vermilingua (meaning "worm tongue"), commonly known for eating ants and termites. The individual species have other names in English and other languages. Together with sloths, they ar ...

s, anacondas,

caiman A caiman ( (also spelled cayman) from Taíno language, Taíno ''kaiman'') is an alligatorid belonging to the subfamily Caimaninae, one of two primary lineages within the Alligatoridae family (biology), family, the other being alligators. ...

bat Bats are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera (). With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most birds, flying with their very long spread-out ...

s, and

sea turtle Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the flatback, green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerh ...

s. A phenomenal variety of fishes populate its waters, and a prodigious amount of different bird species inhabits its trees and skies. The coasts of the Guianas are home to one of the largest populations of the endangered leatherback turtle in the world and hosts millions of migratory birds from North America. Typical Guiana birds include the red ibis and the cock-of-the-rock. Multiple

Indigenous communities There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

live in key parts of the Shield such as the Iwokrama Forest or the Rupununi region.

Offices and staff

The regional office of WWF Guianas is located in

Paramaribo Paramaribo ( , , ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's p ...

. Country offices are also located in Georgetown,

, and

Cayenne Cayenne (; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Caye ...

. Laurent Kelle is the WWF French Guiana Country Office.

References

External links

WWF Guianas website
Nature conservation organizations based in South America Environmental organisations based in Suriname {{SouthAm-org-stub