Sagittaria

Sagittaria

Swiss Association for Environmental Protection in Argentina

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Announcement:
Our 2024 General Assembly will take place on the 4th of December.

The rainforest is disappearing and temperatures are rising!

The effects of climate change are becoming increasingly noticeable. One reason for this is the excessive deforestation of the Atlantic rainforest. Today, not even ten per cent of the world’s most species-rich forest remains. It used to cover huge areas of Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina. Despite this, the clearing of the valuable subtropical forest continues: plants are disappearing, animals are under threat, environmental problems are increasing and the indigenous Mbyá are being deprived of their livelihood. The Matâ Atlantica rainforest is also being used as a water reservoir and to bind the greenhouse gas CO2. It is released unchecked into the atmosphere and continues to fuel global warming. Hereby is important to remember that an old, large tree can store more CO₂ than a young one in a reforestation programme. It therefore makes sense to protect existing primeval forest! (Beobachter, 2024)

The dangerous deforestation of the rainforest must be stopped!

That is why the Sagittaria Association, with the help of donations, is purchasing hectare after hectare of rainforest. The Swiss Association for Environmental Protection in Argentina is returning this precious forest to the Mbyá, the original forest nomads. This ancient people have understood themselves as part of the forest for millennia and live in careful balance with it. Accordingly, they protect the biodiverse forest from logging and help maintain its biological diversity. In doing so, they play a key role in combating soil erosion, conserving the natural water cycles and reducing the greenhouse gas effect.


Sagittaria has already preserved 926 hectares of Atlantic rainforest and returned it to the Mbyá.

Matthias Bernhard, President of Sagittaria

Join us in helping: Only 160,000 Swiss francs are still needed to save 71 hectares of rainforest!

Sagittaria has the opportunity to purchase 71 hectares of rainforest – help us preserve the unique flora and fauna from deforestation and support the Indigenous community of Yvy Pora. Your donation makes the difference!

The left-hand side displays a timelapse illustrating the deforestation in Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Brazil in the period 1984 – 2022. The slightly larger green area in the centre-right of the film shows the province of Misiones. (Google Earth)

We give our all to save the rainforest!

As a small association, Sagittaria’s structure is entirely built on voluntary work. This means that any administrative costs and the running of the association are borne by the board members themselves.

The diagram on the right shows the costs covered by donations. 95% of donations and membership fees are used directly to purchase forest areas. The remaining five per cent covers costs related to the projects and forest purchases, as well as expenses for advertising and printing materials. The remaining amount covers administrative costs, such as website maintenance.

Thanks to our lean organisation and structure, we can ensure that as much of the donated funds as possible are used directly on the ground to save the rainforest!