Foundation for Amazon Sustainability (FAS) Releases Documentary About Conservation Around the Source of the Amazon River in the Arequipa Region, Peru
Launched during the same week as World Environment Day, knowing the importance of water as an essential resource for life on the planet and to draw attention to climate change, the Sustainable Development Solutions Network of the Amazon (SDSN Amazônia)’s host institution, Foundation for Amazon Sustainability (FAS), launched their documentary “Beyond of the borders: Journey to the Source of the Amazon River” on 5 June 2024, on their YouTube channel [ENG | ESP]. The documentary aims to show the importance of creating an environmental conservation area in the birthplace of the Amazon River, in Nevado Mismi, located in the Arequipa region, in Peru.
“Getting to the source of the Amazon River is not easy, so the documentary aims to show this entire experience of reaching the source of this river, which is one of the largest and most important on the planet. And in parallel to this, we also want to show how climate change is affecting the lives of populations living in the Andes and how important it is to make the spring area a protected area. So, I hope that by watching this documentary, people can understand and see that climate change is real and that there is no more time for denialism, we need to act now, so that we can have hope for a prosperous future for all people,” declares Virgilio Viana, General Superintendent of FAS and Chair of SDSN Amazônia.
FAS, together with the National Service of Protected Natural Areas (SERNANP) of the Government of Peru, with the support of the SDSN Amazônia, mobilized to create this area, in early January 2014, when, on an expedition, the general superintendent of FAS, Virgilio Viana, identified the need to conserve the site and presented the proposal to the Peruvian Ministry of the Environment.
The documentary shows the area that comprises the source of the largest river in the world, a territory that covers 28 thousand hectares and is threatened by the melting process of glaciers caused by climate change. According to data from the Instituto Nacional de Investigación en Glaciares y Ecosistemas de Montaña (INAIGEM), El Mismi is at risk of disappearing in 2027. In the last 50 years, the mountain has lost 99% of its glacial reserves, leaving only 0.19 square kilometers remaining. The melting of glaciers has serious consequences for local communities, such as changes in the water regime of natural lakes and streams, risks of avalanches and floods, and the likelihood of contamination by chemicals present in the ice crust and mountains, threatening the ecosystem, the productive systems and the population.
You can learn more about the "Beyond of the borders: Journey to the Source of the Amazon River" documentary at the FAS / SDSN-Amazônia website.
