IPCI marks 25 years of pernambuco conservation

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The International Pernambuco Conservation Initiative (IPCI) was founded 25 years ago this year. To mark the occasion, a benefit concert will take place on 30 May at the Salle de l’Aubette in Strasbourg, France. Violinist Aleksey Igudesman will perform with members of Ilumina, a Brazilian initiative bringing together young instrumentalists from diverse backgrounds.

‘This benefit concert is a celebration of music, art, culture, and environmental conservation, emphasising our collective commitment to preserving the pernambuco tree,’ said organisers in a statement. The evening will also introduce an IPCI project with the Pataxó Hã-Hã-Hãe indigenous community, located near the city of Pau Brasil in the south-east of the country. The initiative aims to combat groundwater depletion through targeted reforestation, including the re-planting of pernambuco trees.

Anne-Sophie Mutter is the honorary patron of the concert. Since 2000 the IPCI has worked to promote the science-based conservation, replanting and sustainable use of pernambuco, which has historically been the main wood used in the bows of stringed instruments. Announced at a recent meeting in Brazil was the development of a new project to establish Brazil’s first Pau Brasil seed-bank or germplasm-bank, which will ensure the future of the species; this will be a science and conservation partnership (including the IPCI) with scientists at the Federal University of Southern Bahia. More information on the concert can be requested from kontakt@ipci-deutschland.org

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