Breaking barriers and stigmas, 26 women join the conservation movement through family planning
July 20, 2022
Thanks to your support, 26 more women have been provided with family planning procedures in the mega-diverse Chocó Rainforest region!
Women for Conservation organized the logistics for these women to travel 5 hours from rural Carmen De Atrato to our Profamilia partners in Medellín in order to receive tubal ligation procedures. While the absence of accessible health care around their community makes family planning resources extremely difficult to access, we are committed to making contraceptive care accessible to all women who want it. In addition to family planning, Women for Conservation also organizes a local W4C women’s group, as well as training female forest guards, organizing reforestation workshops, and leading classes in environmental education for children.
Supporting women looking to prevent unintended pregnancy is an important strategy for Rainforest Conservation. Evidence has shown that more than 200 million women worldwide have an unmet need for family planning resources, and that ensuring that all women have access to contraception is a top solution for mitigating climate change. Sustainable population growth is essential to relieving human stress on natural resources, while also allowing mothers to better care for, feed, and educate the children they already have. When women can plan their pregnancies, her community and the natural environment benefit. The Chocó rainforest region is considered one of the most important tropical habitats on earth, although it is at great risk from cattle ranching, farming, and ranching.
Biodiversity Value of the Mega-diverse Chocó Rainforest
Las Tángaras ProAves Reserve, located in the municipality of Carmen de Atrato, is one of the most diverse and important tropical forest sites on Earth. There are almost 4,000 hectares that protect the Atrato River basin (the most important river in Chocó), which serves as a vital economic resource for tens of thousands of inhabitants who live in the surrounding rural communities. The reserve also prevents rapid and unsustainable development, and reinforces the protection of several threatened indigenous communities.
Las Tangaras Reserve has registered an incredible 495 different species of birds, including 10 endemic bird species and 20 bird species threatened with extinction. The reserve has registered 26 mammal species, including the Andean Mountain Lion, Spectacled Bear (VU), and the Southern Tamandua, among others.
We couldn’t do it without you!
So far in 2022, Women for Conservation has provided 118 families in Carmen de Atrato with life-changing resources and procedures to plan their pregnancies. We wouldn’t be able to do this work without the incredible generosity of our partners and donors, and we are incredibly thankful for this opportunity to profoundly improve Colombian women’s lives while also protecting endangered species and their habitats.