He is deeply moved when he speaks about how Carol, his partner, perceives nature. She can sense if a tree is suffering from the previous year’s drought, even when it appears radiant. With unwavering passion and a sharp, determined focus, Guto has dedicated himself to promoting birdwatching and conservation in one of the most biodiverse countries on Earth—Brazil, a vital lung of the planet.
Jose Augusto “Guto” Carvalho defines himself as “ex-urban” and finds urban life “a form of art, like nature”. A prominent figure in Brazil’s birdwatching community, serving as the Event Coordinator for AvistarBrasil since October 2005, a significant birdwatching fair that celebrates Brazil’s rich avifauna, bringing together enthusiasts, researchers, and professionals from around the world. Under Guto’s leadership, the event has grown substantially, with the 2023 fair attracting a record 9,000 participants. He participates in the III Global Summit Science, Nature and Health.
Not a pose
“The indigenous peoples placed much of their knowledge, their mind, in the beings that cohabited with them. So, the native Brazilians speak of the river as a relative, the mountain as a relative, the parrot as a relative, the jaguar as a relative. And what does it mean to be a relative? We develop an awareness of the relationship.
“It’s interspecies empathy, where you keep part of your being alive shared with the beings by your side. I learned this a lot from my partner, Carol, because I love birds, and she loves plants. She has a kind of plant-based reality glasses. Someone with a special gift.And she looks at a tree, and it’s raining, very humid. She looks at a tree and says, ‘It’s suffering from the drought.’ And I, a physicist, materialist, observer, think, ‘No, it can’t be suffering from the drought because it’s so humid.’ But she perceives the plant world that operates on a different time than ours, because the time it takes for a tree to process the rain that fell, for it to return, happens much later”.
“So, for me, birdwatching is like this. It’s easy to like birds, but it’s also easy to like birds and fall into a kind of collecting. And that’s where the bubble problem comes in, right? The guy who’s a tracker but cares more about his sneakers and clothes than the mountain. Possession, I call it, is the habit.”
Birdwatching
“In birdwatching, there is a term called ‘sparking bird.’ It refers to the bird that first ignites someone’s interest in birdwatching. Everyone takes great pride in sharing their sparking bird—the one that lit the spark.
“But I don’t have a single sparking bird. Perhaps I have sparking birds, plural. My fascination with birds and nature has been with me for as long as I can remember. I can’t pinpoint a specific moment when I had an epiphany about it. It’s something deeply rooted in my past.
“I grew up in a suburban area on the edge of an inland city, São Paulo, right at the boundary between urban and rural zones. I wasn’t a rural person, but I define myself as an “ex-urban”—someone who transitioned out of the urban lifestyle”.
“However, I have a deep admiration for cities and civilization. Urban life is an art form, just as nature is, at least from a human perspective. I never had a sudden realization about my love for nature; I grew up mesmerized by it. Since childhood, I wandered through the nearby coffee plantations and fields, always drawn to the natural world.
Arts and Nature
“I had a rather eclectic career. I started as a physics student, which was, in a way, an extension of my love for nature. I was searching for its fundamental principles. Later, I studied education, earning both an undergraduate and a postgraduate degree in pedagogy. I worked in education, focusing on educational television and media.
“During a difficult post-adolescence phase, I discovered art as a necessity—something therapeutic. That led me to integrate expressive elements into my work. Ultimately, all these interests coalesced, and I became a filmmaker and producer. I founded a production company, working in film, but since we live in a Latin American country where economic circumstances shape professional choices, I transitioned into advertising.
“Advertising provided a space where I could blend art, technology, and financial stability. That experience deepened my understanding of communication and how to express ideas effectively. However, throughout all of this, birdwatching remained a constant in my life”.
“I had been photographing birds since I could afford a camera, back when film was still dominant. I even used leftover negatives from my film projects to take bird photos.”
“Unfortunately, I don’t have much of that material anymore—just memories. A career in advertising, unless you’re a genius like Fernando Meirelles, tends to be short-lived. In my case, that was a good thing. I had my moment of success, secured financial stability, and then shifted my focus toward conservation communication. Since 2000, I have dedicated my work to conservation, choosing birds as my medium”.
Birds as Conservation Ambassadors
“Birds have a unique power to engage people. I once worked in advertising for insecticides, designing animated characters for products like bathroom cleaners. I used to say, ‘If I can find beauty in a toilet bowl and communicate it, then working with birds will be much easier.’ Birds are naturally beautiful, and that beauty makes them an effective gateway to conservation.
“Many conservation efforts, especially in Brazil and other countries, focus on negative messaging—destruction, fire, climate change. While these are critical issues, constant exposure to negative narratives can drive people away. They don’t want to see more tragedy. So, I chose to focus on what people love to see: beauty, joy, and the pleasure of connecting with nature. The goal is to inspire people to care for the environment because they find delight in it, not just out of fear”.
“This approach comes from advertising—always promoting a positive agenda. Instead of focusing on loss and catastrophe, I work to showcase the joy and fulfillment that nature brings. That has been the guiding principle of my work in birdwatching advocacy”.
The Joys and Challenges
“One of the greatest satisfactions in my work is seeing people connect with nature in a meaningful way. When someone begins to appreciate birds, they start noticing the world around them differently. They pay attention to details, sounds, and rhythms that previously went unnoticed. That kind of awareness changes people; it transforms how they interact with their surroundings and, ultimately, how they care for the planet.”
“As for challenges, there are many. Conservation work often exists in an economic and political landscape that doesn’t always prioritize environmental concerns. Additionally, birdwatching, like any specialized field, can become somewhat of an echo chamber—a closed group with its own language and unspoken rules. In some ways, it’s like the world of runners or Nordic walkers, where there’s a shared internal code. But I think the key is breaking out of that bubble, making birdwatching more accessible to a wider audience.
“Birds offer a perfect entry point for nature engagement. They are everywhere, easy to observe, and full of wonder. If we can get more people to look up and listen, we can gain a stronger culture of conservation—one that comes from a place of joy, not just urgency. That, to me, is the essence of my journey with birds”.
Ph: Courtesy Guto Carvalho & J. Quental
