Through the Save The Snakes Support Grant Program, Save The Snakes supported Katty Garzon in 2020 to increase awareness about snakes in Catemaco, Veracruz in Mexico. Katty and her team have maintained a program to educate and provide training to students and professionals in various areas of herpetology in different cities in Mexico. They also managed snakes in captivity, veterinary medicine, animal welfare and environmental education. They have conducted over 15 workshops on various topics on snakes annually.
Project Title:
Art-and-science education program for the conservation of snake and reduction of the human-snake conflict in the locality of Catemaco, State of Veracruz, Mexico.
Project Summary:
Humans in various cultures have feared snakes, provoking an aversion and persecution that hinders conservation efforts for these reptiles. Such fact suggests that conservation strategies for snakes should consider the interactions and perceptions of the local population towards these animals. The aim of this study is investigate people’s perception of snakes and if attitudes and knowledge may differ according to age in local communities in the locality of Catemaco, state of Veracruz, in Mexico, through different techniques based in art-and-science education program.
Aims and Objectives:
The project involves a combination of techniques based in art-and-science education program. The program is designed for two groups: 1) primary school (5 to 11 years-old, 1st to 6th grades), and 2) a recognized artesian and environmental female group of different ages: The “Guardianas del Lago Catemaco”, dedicated to the protection and conservation of the lagoon. To conduct the program at each school group, Katty will follow a sequential intervention that consists of three stages: 1) meetings will be held with the teachers to explain the activities that we have planned, providing opportunities for them to share feelings and suggestions, 2) rapport-building, via cooperative games for creating a trusting environment, and 3) evaluation of knowledge, which are part of the arts-based educational techniques. The project includes three interventions. The first intervention is directed to school groups and will be carried out following different artistic expressions (drawings and puppets storytelling a story) and scientific workshops with didactic tools (games, pictures, coloring books) on natural history, ecology, and conservation. The second and third intervention are directed for the leader group, two workshops will be carried out following structured talks on biology of snakes (e.g., venomous snakes, mimic venomous snakes, management, conservations, myths, and traditional knowledge), and a workshop for women on techniques of natural dyeing on fabric with elements allusive to snakes.
Goal:
The goals of this project are to:
- To increase knowledge about snakes in the area and achieve a change in attitude towards snakes, resulting in conservation and protection actions for snake species through 6 specialized and thematic workshops.
- To train an approximate number of 120 people from the Catemaco community in preventing venomous snake bites and reducing human-snake conflict.
- To elaborate educational material to distribute it to strategic groups of children, youth, women and teachers through the development of specialized workshops.
- To encourage the protection of snakes by training of environmental leaders and defenders of snakes.
Support Snake Conservation
Katty’s project is a recipient of the 2020 Save The Snakes Support Grant Program. Save The Snakes Support Grants are made possible because of the generosity of compassionate people and organizations who are inspired and dedicated to protect threatened snake populations and mitigate human-snake conflict around the world. Please donate today to help us continue to fund projects like Katty’s snake conservation project in Mexico. Thank you for your support.