Think you have double vision? Nope! That’s two Cock-of-the-rock mascots, the flagship species of Aldo Rojas Colca’s Pride campaign in Southern Peru. Oswaldo Contreras, Latin American Pride Program Manager, recently went on a site visit to Peru and blogs about Aldo, his site, and the campaign’s goals.
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Aldo’s two mascots pose on a reed boat on Peru’s Lake Titicaca.
We are at 3,800 meters (12,421 feet) above sea level on the highest lake in the world — the temperature is cold and the air is thick. But that doesn’t stop the leader of this Pride campaign, Aldo Rojas Colca, and two volunteers from making a short boat trip to the floating reed islands of Lake Titicaca, Peru. They don’t mind at all posing in two identical Cock-of-the-rock, or Tunki (the local name for the bird) costumes, as the breathtaking lake couldn’t be a better setting for a photo shoot. The Tunki is the Peruvian National Bird and Aldo’s mascot for the Pride campaign at the Bahuaja Sonene National Park in Southern Peru.
Made up of both Amazon rainforest and South American Savanna, Bahuaja Sonene National Park is one of the most bio-diverse parks in the Andes. Ranging from 200 to 2,450 meters above sea level, Bahuaja Sonene protects unique endemic and endangered wildlife. Over 500 species of birds and mammals like jaguars, big otters and harpy eagles live in the park regulated by Peru’s national park service, INRENA. INRENA and the conservation organization Profonanpe are currently partnering with Rare on four conservation campaigns in Peru.
Aldo is a native of Puno, a city of 100,000 just next to Lake Titicaca. He is a descendant of the Aymara tribe which was one of the only tribes not controlled by the Incas. Aldo is quiet but an extremely diligent and innovative campaign manager who is always trying to do his best. Since the park can be somewhat inaccessible, it was his idea to have two costumes so his campaign can work constantly on both the upper and lower areas of the reserve.
During my one week monitoring visit, Aldo and I worked on setting up some elements of the Pride campaign. For a full week we created and finalized adult comic book scripts, songs, radio spots, games, slogans, designs, and even visited artists in the old Inca capital, Cusco. All of these materials convey the goal of this campaign — stopping deforestation on Bahuaja Sonene´s National Park buffer zone. Promoting shade grown coffee and cocoa is a strategy to overcome the high deforestation rates in Bahuaja Sonene.
Aldo’s dedication and drive has impressed me greatly, and I look forward to seeing his strategies help change the habits of the people around Bahuaja Sonene National Park and conserve the area.
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