The Power of Nature-Based Solutions: An example of one community’s success
April is Earth Month, a time to honor our planet and take action to protect it for future generations. Earth Day—which is celebrated annually on April 22nd—is one of the most important days of the year for advocacy, with over one billion participants estimated worldwide.
As we all know, we are facing a planetary emergency characterized by biodiversity loss, climate change and land degradation. The world has lost over 70 percent of its biodiversity in the last 50 years, and temperatures continue to rise at dangerous levels. With all the frightening messaging about climate change urging humans to take action before it is too late, it is easy to become overwhelmed or disheartened.
At GLP Films, we lead from the standpoint of positivity and optimism. We believe in the power of visual storytelling to educate, inspire and offer examples of hope and positivity, and show the resilience of amazing communities working hard as agents of change for a nature-positive future.
WHAT ARE NATURE-BASED CLIMATE SOLUTIONS?
Nature-based climate solutions is a term used to describe a range of strategies that utilize natural ecosystems and processes to mitigate climate change and adapt to its impacts. These solutions leverage the ability of forests, wetlands, grasslands, mangroves and other natural landscapes to absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere and store it, helping to reduce greenhouse gas concentrations.
Examples of nature-based climate solutions include afforestation and reforestation, sustainable forest management and conservation, wetland reforestation and management of grassland and savannas. The good news is that nature-based climate solutions are already working behind the scenes today and we don’t need to reinvent the wheel.
LOCAL INNOVATION
One inspiring example is the story of Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda (GESG), the Grand Prize winner of the GLP Films’ 2022 Sustainability Storytelling Competition (SSC).
Over 35 years ago Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda (GESG) was founded. Led by Martha “Pati” Ruiz Corzo and her family, the group set out on their mission to preserve, protect and regenerate the unique biodiversity of the Sierra Gorda—a rugged, mountainous landscape in the northern part of Querétaro, Mexico that is known for its incredible, diverse ecosystems and extraordinary flora and fauna.
In the early 1990s, Pati and the Sierra Gorda community realized that they were rapidly losing their forests due to deforestation as farmers would illicitly burn down forests to make way for agriculture and grazing cattle. Deforestation was exacerbated by the dry, rainless conditions of climate change which destroyed the Sierra Gorda at an alarming rate.
While the situation seemed insurmountable, Pati and her community at GESG knew to never give up hope. Instead, she created Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda to work with the state of Querétaro and community members to provide a locally-led economic incentive strategy and program for the owners of the forests to work towards its regeneration.
Through hard work and dedication, GESG worked with the state of Querétaro to help successfully pass a new law. Companies that emit more than 50,000 tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere have to pay a carbon tax to support the local community for conservation and carbon capture. This legislation was the first of its kind in Mexico.
“It is a very noble project for me,” says Pati. “The polluters are paying you to fight climate change, and to protect threatened species while also improving the local economy. As a woman leader in Mexico, it has not been an easy fight. But I believe in the power of local solutions, and that gives me hope and enthusiasm.”
Today, GESG’s local, science-based model is being applied to a regional carbon reduction program and provides a global model that can be replicated on a larger scale. As the impacts of climate change continue to accelerate declines in biodiversity, GESG’s work brings us hope for a better future.
This Earth Month, we are excited to introduce the full version of the film we made for GESG, following the trailer that was released earlier this year. The film powerfully highlights the successful conservation and climate solutions they initiated decades ago in response to the rapid environmental deterioration of their home in the Sierra Gorda bioregion in Querétaro, Mexico.
We continue to promote GESG’s work because of their incredible resilience, perseverance, and creativity with nature-based climate solutions. They are always striving to bring progress to the region and serve as a global example of community-led, research-based conservation projects. We all think the world could use some inspiration and hope in the fight against climate change. Because there is no Planet B.
Watch Local Climate Solutions: Sierra Gorda's untold story. A story of resilience, innovation, and the extraordinary power of local action. Local actors are the custodians and agents of change and a driving force for a nature-positive future.
We are always looking for new stories to share! Please let us know how we can help tell your own story of success, hope, and sustainability.