Once in danger, Mexico’s ‘green jewel’ has become a model of conservation

MARTHA Isabel “Pati” Ruiz Corzo moved to the Sierra Gorda–a dramatic expanse of wilderness in the heart of Mexico–four decades ago in search of a quiet, idyllic place to raise her family.

But what the former music teacher from Querétaro City found instead was a land scarred by logging, road building and other types of oftenunregulated development, which were whittling away at Sierra Gorda’s unique mix of jungles and cloud forests.

That led Ruiz Corzo to launch a grassroots movement that has spent 40 years protecting one of Mexico’s most ecologically diverse areas. At the effort’s core is the idea that local communities should play a leading role in conservation and that preserving Sierra Gorda’s natural spaces could be more profitable than razing them.

“We have lost that natural world that we once had contact with. So, all that remains is sacred to me,” said Ruiz Corzo, who in 2013 was named a United Nations Champion of the Earth, the UN’s highest environmental honor. “I believe our society should connect with the nature that sustains us as a loving mother.”

Today, Sierra Gorda is home to a web of thriving ecosystems that host an array of wildlife, including more than 1,100 species of birds and butterflies, and endangered animals, such as the jaguar. The region is widely viewed as a rare conservation success story, one that is receiving more attention as countries try to stem the erosion of the natural world. Globally, unchecked human expansion into once-wild places is one of the reasons more than one million species are being pushed towards extinction.

“The success of Sierra Gorda is proof that it is possible to reverse nature’s decline and to create more sustainable communities,” said Juan Bello, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Regional Director. “In the 10 years since Pati Ruiz Corzo received the Champions of the Earth award, Sierra Gorda has continued to serve as a shining example of how conservation can go hand in hand with economic development.” A leading model of community action Covering more than 380,000 hectares, almost a third of the state of Querétaro, Sierra Gorda is filled with mountains, rivers, jungles, semiarid deserts and mist-shrouded cloud forests.

UNESCO has described the area as Mexico’s “green jewel.” Ruiz Corzo moved to Sierra Gorda in the 1980s and soon came to find that what was once a pristine wilderness was becoming laced with roads, garbage dumps and logging operations. That led her to found the Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda with her husband and local residents.

“It was impossible not to act,” Ruiz Corzo said.

Thanks to Grupo Ecológico’s efforts, Sierra Gorda was declared a protected area by the federal government in 1997, and UNESCO named it a Biosphere Reserve in 2001. UNEP News

Saavedra shines as Tams whip Green Spikers

FAR EASTERN University survived the first match that went the distance in the week-long V-League Men’s Collegiate Challenge marked by straight-set romps, repelling De La Salle U, 25-22, 2025, 25-23, 16-25, 17-15, on Sunday at the Paco Arena.

The Tams overcame huge deficits to upend the Green Spikers, including a 9-13 hole in the decider as Dryx Saavedra stepped up to anchor the team’s stirring 8-2 closing run capped by back-to-back kills that ended that tense-filled two-hour, 24-minute match.

Games

Saavedra wound up with 25 points, all from spikes, as the Tams rebounded from a shutout loss to the fancied National U Bulldogs in the opener last Wednesday for a 1-1 slate.

“Yung nangyari sa game is make-or-break din kasi balikatan ‘yung laban. Sa mga ganyan din, test of character din ng players kung paano mag-handle ng pressure,” said newly-installed head coach Ed Orcullo.

Andrei Delicana added 16 points on 12 spikes, three blocks and an ace, while Jomel Codilla finished with nine markers for FEU.

Noel Kampton paced De La Salle with 20 points on 18 kills and two aces while Vince Maglinao produced 17 points, 15 of which came from attacks.

Turnovers a concern for Reyes

GILAS Pilipinas may have shown flashes of its full potential when it won over many-time African champion Ivory Coast in a recent tuneup game, but coach Chot Reyes sees a lot of room for improvement, like limiting their errors to the minimum.

“We had 18 turnovers. And that’s something we have to address,” said Reyes after his wards subdued African qualifier Ivory Coast, 85-62.

Reyes watched for the first time how NBA star Jordan Clarkson and sixtime PBA MVP June Mar Fajardo played together with Scottie Thompson and Kai Sotto on Friday night at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City.

Clarkson and Fajardo scored 13 points apiece to tow five Gilas Pilipinas players in double figures for Team Philippines.

“It’s the first time for us to play with Jordan, Kai and Scottie with the team, and we still have kinks in our offense,” said Reyes.

AJ Edu had 12 points and seven rebounds, Thompson added 11, and the 7’3” Sotto knocked in 10 points on 5 of 6 shooting.

With the win, Gilas got some confidence going into their first game in the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup starting August 25 against the Dominican Republic.

Clarkson played without relief in the first half and had six rebounds, but sat out the first four minutes of the third quarter and the entire fourth period.

Gilas opened up scoring in the third period, getting double-digit leads before taking a 60-53 lead going to the final 10 minutes.

“We moved the ball. And we showed great intensity in moving the ball,” said Reyes. Peter Atencio