The Board
Our mission:Peter van der Helm, President.
"There is a lot I like and love about Brazil, but some things are just more important. The preservation of culture and rainforest caught my attention after meeting Ian Wagenhuis. Together we travelled to Brazil where he helped me for a production. At this time he introduced me to Terra Nossa and impressed me with his knowledge about the area and experiences and history of the Pataxo. This lead to my personal and business like support for the Terra Nossa Foundation. I am very happy to be in the position where I can use my personal contacts, my experiences and the resources from my advertising agency for this cause. This enables the Terra Nossa Foundation to create more awareness and infect people with the same love we’ve got for culture and rainforest in need of preservation."
Chris Bransz, The Treasurer
"When I was asked to become treasurer of Terra Nossa, I almost immediately said yes. The charming way of Ian Wagenhuis and a future new connection with Latin America and it's indigenous population gave the breakthrough. After I studied chemistry in Wageningen, I worked for 30 years in development cooperation mostly in South America. The first 15 years I worked with sending out and guiding fieldworkers in South America, the other 15 years I worked with the financial support of these particular agencies. At the moment I am financial controller with a big health organisation in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The preservation of traditional living space of native populations and sustainable development, are for me important issues.
I hope that from my project experience and financial expertise I can deliver my share to the Terra Nossa Foundation".
Dr.Niels Harkink, The Chairman
"In the year 2004 I travelled for the first time to Bahia, Brazil, where I was confronted with Pataxo culture and the remainder of the Atlantic Rainforest. The clearing of the forest and the cave in of Pataxo culture, under influence of western wealth, touched me deeply. Later that year I was guest at the home of Ian Wagenhuis in Brazil, and a friendship and shared passion for nature and culture preservation was reinforced.
The Terra Nossa Foundation offers me the chance to support the Pataxo tribe with sustainable development and the maintenance of traditional customs, knowledge, and territory.
I support the foundation with my knowledge of medicine as a doctor, my rich experience with organisational work with associations from my student years, and my knowledge concerning music".
Ian Wagenhuis , Founder and Director
"In the year 2000 I was studying at the Unicamp University, in Sao Paulo State, Brazil. It was the year of the famous demonstration of Brazil's Indigenous populations against the celebration of the 500 year ''discovery'' of Brazil.
This symbolic demonstration moved me deeply that I decided to travel to the south of the State Bahia to get to know the tribe which was organising the demonstration. Once I arrived I got so inspired that I decided to visit all (sometimes only recently demarcated) Pataxo homelands by foot. While visiting the different homelands I took many portrait photo’s of Pataxo tribal members in the 3 years time I was travelling around the area.
During these travels I made several long lasting friendships with the Pataxo's, and I was even made tribal member. During the many trekking's in and around Pataxo territory, my love for the Atlantic Rainforest was born. The Pataxo tribe showed me from up-close the magic of the old growth forest, and introduced me to the way the tribe (used too) sustainably harvest nearly all products necessary for their survival.
In the year 2003 Tui and Thomas Cook decided to operate a holiday charter flight in the proximity of several Pataxo homelands, this gave me the opportunity to combine my study with the Pataxo tribe with working with social tourism. Out of this time several social programs grew, that supported a Pataxo school, several Pataxo family’s, and a landless farmers camp. Once I got back to the Netherlands, I noticed on holidays to Brazil the further deforestation and fragmentation of the Atlantic Rainforest, and the effects of a mega eucalyptus plantation, which is changing the ecology of the region.
Furthermore I learned how Dutch industry is connected to the deforestation of the Atlantic Rainforest in the south of Bahia. This started first through the cacao trade, than a Dutch logging company, and nowadays as sole supplier of chemicals needed for the eucalyptus growth.
The destruction of the natural landscape and the struggle of local communities against tree plantations inspired me to start up project Terra Inc."
Download documents
You can download the following documents:
-PDF Dutch language; Project Terra Inc (please send a request mail to info@terrainc.nl )
-PDF Dutch language,; Digital Smoke Signal (please send a request mail to info@terrainc.nl )
-Year report Dutch language Terra Nossa Foundation 2008 (under construction)
-Charter Dutch language Terra Nossa Foundation 2007 (please send a request mail to info@terrainc.nl )
