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Everyone knows Angelo Robelo in the Pantanal, the largest freshwater wetland in the world. You remember that 30 years ago he wore a military suit and was in command of the environmental military police of Mato Grosso do Sul (Brazil), where he trained almost a hundred forest guards. Today he works as director of the Homem Pantaneiro Institute, a civil society organization that protects the ecosystem, manages protected areas and connects local communities to help preserve the wealth of their areas. This is an extremely biodiverse space and the largest jaguar refuge in the world. For the former colonel, the change of role was not difficult: “I have controlled poaching and illegal trade in these cats in one way or another all my life.”
Robelo holds degrees in military brigade officer training and law from the Catholic University of Dom Bosco. He also holds a master's degree in public security management from the Center for Advanced Security Studies. And as he recalls in a video call with América Futura, he has been implementing sustainability programs in both the public and private sectors for decades. Drawing on his environmental experience, he met with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva a few days before flying to Dubai to follow up on COP28. “He brought together an expert from each ecosystem in Brazil. He wanted to understand them all and not just talk about the Amazon. I wanted to understand Brazil in its richness and abundance,” he explains. That was one of the premises he debated the most: “That the Pantanal receives the same attention as the Amazon.” And that we work not only on reforestation, but also on restoring biodiversity.”
The former colonel – and the entire scientific and environmental community – are unabashedly celebrating the change of government in Brazil. “I would say that we are living in an extraordinary moment with Lula's government Environment Minister Marina (Silva) and the governors. The one from Mato Grosso do Sul, for example, is a biologist. “Everything is changing,” he adds. For Robelo, “many actions and programs were violently destroyed” during Jair Bolsonaro’s term. This, he says, is a good time to reverse the trend.
María Adelaida Correa, Corporate Director of ISA Sustainability, and Angelo Robelo, during the interview.Andrés Felipe Restrepo Palacio
The carbon market, a way to preserve the Jaguar
Among Robelo's many priorities is ensuring that the Pantanal remains the largest jaguar refuge in the world. Half of the world's largest cats live in this area, but fires and deforestation seriously threaten this protected area. Although animal trafficking and poaching were the main threats in the 80s and 90s, the current problem is the presence of landowners and ranchers who view the jaguar as a threat to their livestock. That's why the colonel – as he is called in Brazil – focuses more and more on this conversation with the residents and farm owners. “We have programs today that aim to go from farm to farm and propose efficient technologies that already exist to reduce these conflicts and not wipe out the small remaining population,” he explains.
This species lives in 18 countries in the Americas and its homeland is often ecosystems below 2,000 meters above sea level. such as tropical forests, mountain forests, tropical savannahs and mangroves. According to WWF, jaguars have disappeared from 46% of their original territory due to human interference and are extinct in countries such as El Salvador and Uruguay. Across the rest of the continent, the species is in near-threatened (NT) status and its populations are declining, according to data from the IUCN Red List of Species.
In the context of the challenges posed by Robelo, the Jaguar Connection project was also born in Brazil, an initiative of Grupo ISA, a Colombian company specializing in energy with a presence throughout the region. The program supports the reduction of retaliatory hunting and implements a human-cat coexistence initiative, where we promote healthy coexistence between rural communities and wildlife. It also provides technical and economic support to the best forestry initiatives across the Jaguar Corridor to issue and market certified carbon credits.
They recently published the creation of the REDD+ project Serra do Amolar in the Brazilian Pantanal, Natural Heritage of Humanity and UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. It is the first company to be certified with more than 231,000 approved carbon credits, following the audit and verification process according to the international VERRA standard and an independent audit. These are sold on the international voluntary market.
María Adelaida Correa, Corporate Director of Sustainability of the Colombian company ISA, emphasizes the relevance of the jaguar for ecosystems: “It is not free to choose the jaguar. We did it because it is a type of umbrella. This means that the fact that the jaguar persists in its ecosystems is a sign that the system is healthy and that the food chain that follows it is in place.”
Angelo Robelo, at the Conexión Jaguar headquarters in Medellín.Andrés Felipe Restrepo Palacio
When asked how it can be ensured that the economic benefits of this CO2 market are retained in the communities, Coronel answers bluntly: “Yes, there are some CO2 markets that do not function properly.” But we are allowed to do this enormously First of all, don't discredit the opportunity. It is an irresponsible act. Climate change is progressing very rapidly and this is a great opportunity.” For Robelo, environmental education is very important, but it is not enough. “The market had to get into protecting ecosystems. Of course companies want to make a profit, but they also want to contribute to society,” he says.