Young Rangers Programme
The Young Rangers Programme was started in 2004 to build on the success of the school visits and to provide the opportunity for some students to become more actively involved in REGUA as well as becoming more informed about environmental issues.
The Programme is based on meetings every Friday between 14:00 to 17:00 hours in the Guapiaçu Conservation Centre over a ten month period for a maximum of twenty students of both sexes aged between 12 and 16. These students must be regular school attendees, and ideally we try to attract local children from underprivileged families with a history of hunting. The Programme covers a wide range of topics from good manners and basic sex education to environmental law and sustainability, but there is special emphasis placed on REGUA's fauna and the reforestation and restoration of degraded areas. These lessons are combined with practical outdoor experiences such as walks in the forest accompanied by REGUA's rangers, the collection of seeds, seed germination and tree planting. We have also organized visits out of the Guapiaçu basin to visit local areas of importance such as The Rio de Janeiro Primate Centre, The Biological Reserve of Poço das Antas and have encouraged Young Rangers to become involved in local seminars on subjects such as the Cachoeiras de Macacu Zoning Plan and the Agenda 21 workshop.
The main objective of the Programme is to encourage the students to become responsible community members with an understanding of the threats to their local environment, as well as a greater awareness of the wider environmental issues facing us all. Creating a more knowledgeable and sympathetic local community will clearly benefit REGUA, but it is also hoped that the wide range of subjects covered may encourage some students to continue their studies through secondary education and perhaps even to University.
We are very proud that over the last four years over sixty young rangers have participated in the Programme, and in 2008 REGUA recruited its first full-time employee from amongst their ranks.
The development of the Young Rangers programme
| Year | Progress to date |
| 2004 | The Young Rangers Program started with the support of The Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest Trust (BART) and the Golden Lion Tamarin Association. The first group consisted of eight residents of the Guapiaçu community. | 2005 | A group of nine students joined the programme. The objectives of the programme became clearer and more well defined. |
| 2006 | Membership grew to twenty, including five veterans and fifteen new students. During the year, a total of twenty-eight workshops were held on Friday afternoons in the improved Guapiaçu Conservation Centre at REGUA. |
| 2008 | Eight new students joined the course. Over sixty youngsters have participated in the Young Ranger Programme since its inception in 2004. REGUA recruited its first ex-student as a full ranger. |
The Young Rangers programme in 2008
This year's Young Ranger Programme started on March 14th, with workshops on Friday afternoons and additional activities planned for Saturday mornings to include escorted walks in REGUA's forest. Seventeen students have enrolled in the 2008 programme; nine of them have been involved since 2006 but there are eight newcomers. Eleven of the twelve boys and five girls come from Guapiaçu village, four are from Matumbo and one each comes from Estreito and Areal.
By the end of April there have already been seven workshops which included:
- A walk along the Waterfall Trail (green trail) to the waterfall accompanied by the Environmental Education Officer and REGUA ranger, Rildo.
- A river clearance walk along the Estreito river from the heart of Matumbo village upstream towards Estreito village, where they collected bottles and other plastics from the banks of the river.
- Birdwatching in the wetlands with REGUA bird guide Adilei. Binoculars and bird field books were provided.
Activities in the classroom have included writing a play about the Red-billed Curassow's reintroduction at REGUA and the Young Rangers also wrote a Green Newsletter which will be distributed in all the communities around REGUA. Further events are planned to covers subjects such as:
- Brazilian biomes, with special emphasis on the Atlantic Rainforest ecosystem.
- Global warming.
- Arts and crafts using recycled materials.
- REGUA's fauna and flora.
- English language basic knowledge (organised by volunteers visiting REGUA).
- Reforestation at REGUA.