July 17, 2012
The book, which explains the methodology used during the implementation of the first Brazilian carbon sequestration project, internationally known as Social Carbon, was launched last Tuesday night, July, 10th, at the Literary Coffee of the Tocantins International Literary Fair (FLIT). “Biodiversity and Social Carbon” was written by Dr. Divaldo Rezende, Secretary of the State for Environment and Sustainable Development of Tocantins, and Italian economist Stefano Merlin.
The governor Siqueira de Campos and his wife Marilúcia Uchoa Siqueira de Campos honored the book launch. The Secretary of Education, Danilo de Melo Souza, and the Secretary of Culture, Katia Rocha, also attended the event with several state authorities and the general public who were interested to learn about the book, which has made Tocantins a recognized name overseas. Members of the Academia Tocantinense de Letras (Tocantins Academy of Arts) and the Academia Palmense de Letras (Palmas Academy of Arts) also participated in the event.
Divaldo Rezende and Stefano Merlin developed the Social Carbon Methodology during the implementation of the first Brazilian carbon sequestration project, which was carried out with indigenous communities at the Bananal Island and its surroundings. As awareness about the methodology increased all over the world, Divaldo and Stefano gained international prominence regarding carbon markets and climate change. The authors are frequently requested to implement projects in Europe, Asia and Africa.
According to Divaldo, the Social Carbon is an example of a local action that has had a positive global repercussion. Its development has changed his life and brought new directions for carbon sequestration projects. “Tocantins is a young State and under the sustainable development and climate change context, it is already known for the successful efforts realized within the Social Carbon”.
Stefano Merlin, currently the President of Ecologica Institute, an organization that implements emission reductions and climate change projects using the Social Carbon Methodology, talked about the importance of launching the book at FLIT. “The book launch is very important because it brings back the knowledge to the place where the Social Carbon Methodology was created and developed”.
The original article, in Portuguese, is available at http://semades.to.gov.br/noticia/governador-prestigia-lancamento-de-livro-no-cafe-literario-da-flit/895