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a8    local
                     Tuesday 23 april 2024

            FPNA changes to its new identity "Aruba Conservation Foundation"



            Yesterday,  the  indepen-                                                                                           foundation  underwent  a
            dent  nature  conservation                                                                                          comprehensive     strategic
            organization   known     as                                                                                         process  from  2020  to  2022
            Fundacion  Parke  Nacio-                                                                                            to determine its new direc-
            nal  Aruba  (FPNA)  took  the                                                                                       tion for the coming years.
            opportunity of Earth Day to
            reveal  its  transformation,                                                                                        In  June  of  last  year,  they
            now  becoming  the  Aruba                                                                                           launched  the  strategy  for
            Conservation    Foundation                                                                                          the  next  10  years,  part  of
            (ACF).                                                                                                              which  involved  transition-
                                                                                                                                ing  from  a  park  manage-
            In  an  interview  with  Ede-                                                                                       ment  organization  to  a
            line Berg, who serves as the                                                                                        conservation  and  nature
            communications & market-                                                                                            organization.  At  that  time,
            ing manager, Tyson Lopez,                                                                                           they  introduced  the  Multi
            CEO  of  the  foundation,                                                                                           Annual Corporate Strategy
            and  Natasha  Silva,  who  is                                                                                       2023–2032,  which  marks
            the  conservation  director,                                                                                        the  organization's  first  stra-
            they  revealed  that  since                                                                                         tegic  map  responding  to
            June of last year, they have                                                                                        new   ecological,   social,
            been discussing the organi-                                                                                         and economic challenges,
            zation's  transition  from  be-                                                                                     emphasizing  conservation,
            ing  a  park  management                                                                                            sustainability,  biodiversity,
            organization to a conserva-                                                                                         ecological system improve-
            tion organization.                                                                                                  ment, and restoration initia-
            Over  the  past  7  years,  the                                                                                     tives.
            foundation  has  expanded
            its  role  and  responsibilities                                                                                    For  this  reason,  they  de-
            beyond  managing  Arikok                                                                                            cided to rebrand because
            National  Park,  being  ap-                                                                                         many  people  in  the  com-
            pointed to manage several                                                                                           munity  recognized  them
            additional protected areas                                                                                          as  "Arikok  Park",  to  make
            around Aruba.                                                                                                       their  work  more  under-
                                                                                                                                standable,  to  align  with
            In 2017, they began to un-                                                                                          the new strategic direction
            dertake  more  conserva-                                                                                            and  conservation  actions
            tion  actions,  where  some-                                                                                        of ACF to change the per-
            times the community didn't                                                                                          ception  and  image  of  a
            fully understand what they                                                                                          traditional  park  manage-
            were  doing,  such  as  clos-                                                                                       ment   organization   that
            ing  an  illegal  entrance  to  impact  on  nature,"  Lopez  added  to  the  foundation's  management.              only  operates  within  park
            the park at Shete, an unau-  explained.                   responsibilities, and in 2019,                            boundaries  and  focuses
            thorized  entry  in  the  park's                          the Marine Park, consisting  In 2020, 11 additional terres-  solely  on  recreation.  Thus,
            design.  "That  was  to  try  to  This  year,  the  mangrove  of  four  protected  marine  trial  areas  were  added  to  they  adopted  their  new
            minimize pathways to have  and  saline  RAMSAR  site  areas, was officially placed  the  management,  includ-       direction as a modern con-
            fewer cars running with less  #198  Spaans  Lagoon  was  under  the  organization's  ing  areas  like  Duinen  Sa-  servation management or-
                                                                                                   sarawichi,  Saliña  Malmok,  ganization.
                                                                                                   Rooi Lamunchi, and Costa
                                                                                                   Sero Colorado, among oth-    Today, ACF reaffirms its po-
                                                                                                   ers.                         sition as Aruba's steward for
                                                                                                                                nature,  with  the  organiza-
                                                                                                   Additionally,  the  founda-  tion  acting  and  advocat-
                                                                                                   tion  actively  participates  ing for the protection, pres-
                                                                                                   in  conservation  efforts,  in-  ervation,  and  restoration
                                                                                                   cluding  collaboration  with  of  the  island's  ecological
                                                                                                   various  local  and  interna-  system and biodiversity, re-
                                                                                                   tional  NGOs  for  programs  minding  locals  and  visitors
                                                                                                   such  as  conservation  of  of  their  connection  to  na-
                                                                                                   the Shoco (owl), mangrove  ture.
                                                                                                   and coral restoration, rein-  "The  idea  is  that  we  priori-
                                                                                                   troduction of the endemic  tize  nature  and  recreation
                                                                                                   and  extinct  Lora  (parrot)  comes  after  because  we
                                                                                                   in  Aruba,  management  of  also understand that recre-
                                                                                                   invasive species, and edu-   ation is important because
                                                                                                   cation  within  the  Aruban  people  need  to  connect
                                                                                                   community,  especially  for  with  nature  to  appreci-
                                                                                                   school children.             ate  it.  But  nature  comes
                                                                                                                                first, and that's what we've
                                                                                                   For better management of  been doing in recent years
                                                                                                   the  expanding  tasks  and  as  well,  even  with,  for  ex-
                                                                                                   to  mitigate  the  increas-  ample,  wanting  to  install
                                                                                                   ing pressure on nature, the  the wind turbine at q
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