Felipe Bernardino Guimarães, from Ibama, is the guest of the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden for a special edition of the Biodiversity Forum

Proposal to include brazilwood in Annex I of CITES is the subject of the talk, which will be held on May 6 at the Botanical Garden Museum

In celebration of Brazilwood Day, celebrated on May 3, the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden is holding a special edition of the Biodiversity Forum with the participation of Felipe Bernardino Guimarães, an environmental analyst from Ibama and a national reference in the anatomical identification of wood. The activity will take place on Tuesday, May 6, at 2:30 pm, in the Multipurpose Room of the Botanical Garden Museum, with free admission, subject to capacity.

The subject of the lecture will be the proposal to include pau-brasil (Paubrasilia echinata) in Appendix I of CITES - the list that brings together the most endangered species, whose international trade is only permitted in exceptional circumstances. “I'm also going to deal with fraud and environmental illicit activities involving the violin bow industry, which were uncovered by Ibama's Operation 'Dó Ré Mi',” explains the speaker.

A species native to the Atlantic Forest and Brazil's national tree, the brazilwood is currently classified as endangered. With extensive experience in monitoring the illegal timber trade and controlling the export of protected species, Guimarães acts as the administrative authority for CITES in the country and has dedicated his career to training public agents in combating environmental crimes related to timber.
The Biodiversity Forum is aimed at specialists, researchers, students and other interested parties. The event will also be broadcast live on JBRJ's YouTube channel with a certificate of participation issued to both in-person and online audiences.

Held monthly at the Botanical Garden Museum, the Biodiversity Forum is coordinated by a board of experts from the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden Research Institute (JBRJ) and promotes debate on biodiversity conservation and key environmental issues.