The first and the largest private nature reserve in the state of Tocantins, Brasil
Est. 1996.
In the heart of one of the world biodiversity hotspots, the year 1996 was to be celebrated as the one in which a 2,632 acres area of Cerrado ecosystem in Central Brazil became the Minnehaha Nature Reserve. Commited to this initiative, the land owners started the first conservation projects in the history of the municipality.
For the ten ensuing years, they have been awarded external funding from the Global Environment Facility and from the National Environment Fund,
of the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources in Brazil. These projects brought together the technical assistance of the renowned government institutions EMBRAPA Cerrados and the IBAMA,
and the well known Brazilian conservation organizations Institute Society, Population and Nature - ISPN and Pro-Nature Foundation - Funatura, thus benefiting the local populations with practical knowledge on conservation and forest fire management.
Since 2006, under a federal act that warrants to the municipality a percentage of the state tax revenue due the existence of private nature reserves, the Minnehaha Nature Reserve has guaranteed government funding to the municipality in order to implement conservation practices and policies.