Projects We Support - Natura International

We Support the Protection of Natural Areas

A protected area is a tool for the long-term conservation of the biological and cultural diversity of a territory. It is composed of geographically defined and delimited spaces, which must be integrated with the surrounding territories to guarantee biological connectivity (for example, through buffer zones or ecological corridors). It should also integrate local communities through participatory mechanisms, both at the time of creation and during implementation.

There are various categories of protected area management, ranging from strict categories, which only allow research, control and surveillance, to less strict categories, which allow the sustainable use of natural resources. There are different governance schemes for the areas: they can be administered by governments at different levels (municipal, provincial, national), by private landowners, indigenous or local peoples, universities, or they can be jointly managed by some of these administrators.

The creation of a protected area offers significant benefits for biodiversity and ecosystem services. A protected area can preserve key portions of watersheds (such as aquifer catchment and recharge sites), contributing to the care of water for consumption and productive use in neighboring areas; it can protect key links in food chains, collaborating in the biological control of pests and/or naturally regulating the emergence of zoonotic diseases; and it allows the custody of landscapes and cultural-natural sites that serve for the enjoyment, recreation and spiritual connection of visitors and local inhabitants. The development of sustainable tourism, scientific, recreational and environmental education activities in these areas provides opportunities for local and regional socio-economic development.

At Natura International we are dedicated to promoting the creation of new protected areas in areas where globally important biodiversity is threatened. We invest mainly in Argentina, but also support highly catalytic projects in the Amazon rainforests and Andean cloud forests when the opportunity arises.

Our in-country partners and allies work closely with local communities and municipal, provincial and national governments, articulating with local NGOs and the scientific sector to achieve these conservation objectives. We are committed to expanding the network of protected areas, which represent an extraordinary opportunity for communities and conservation.

La Rioja: Protected Area in the Sierras of Famatina

We support Natura Argentina’s work toward the creation of a protected area in the Sierras de Famatina, an area of great biological value and beauty in La Rioja, located in northwestern Argentina.

Its high mountains and deep valleys contain an important diversity of plants and animals. Its snow-covered peaks rise to over 5,000 meters, with montane forests and the vegetation at its base creating a beautiful landscape that deserves to be protected.

The conservation of this area has been threatened on several occasions by large international mining companies seeking to extract the gold deposits in these Sierras, which damages the main resource of this place: water.

Natura Argentina works together with the local communities to conserve the watershed and the biodiversity of the area, and to strengthen the local economy by promoting nature tourism as a sustainable alternative. The creation of a protected area that provides a legal shield to these mountains will put an end to the fight against open-pit mining.

Learn more about this and other projects of Natura Argentina at: www.naturaargentina.org

Salta: Protection of Chaco and Altos Andes

In Salta, Natura Argentina works with the provincial government, local communities and other relevant stakeholders to promote the participatory design of protected areas in natural and cultural landscapes of conservation priority. These areas will preserve a variety of ecosystems, ranging from the rich forests of the Chaco in the lowlands to the High Andes at over 5,000 meters.

These areas contain many species of conservation concern, including endangered species such as the Chacoan Peccary, the Jaguar, the Taruca and the Andean Cat. The territories contain relevant cultural heritage and are also important for human needs and well-being, as they host the upper reaches of watersheds that provide drinking water to downstream communities or protect indigenous lands.

Natura Argentina facilitates and supports alliances and constructive dialogues with governments, indigenous peoples, local inhabitants, universities and municipalities, with the aim of achieving the declaration of protected areas through legitimate participatory processes.

Ansenuza National Park

Since 2017, Natura International has supported Natura Argentina and other local conservationists in their efforts to create a protected area in Ansenuza.

Natura Argentina collaborates with the national and provincial government for the conservation of the Mar Chiquita and the Rio Dulce wetland ecosystems in the provinces of Córdoba and Santiago del Estero. Their joint efforts led to the declaration of the Ansenuza National Park of over 1.6 million acres in 2022, located in Córdoba.

This wetland stands out for its vast diversity of environments and represents a key site for global biodiversity conservation.

Its grasslands, forests, and coastal areas support a wide variety of wildlife, including three out of the six flamingo species worldwide. Moreover, it serves as a primary destination for long-distance migrants, such as the Wilson’s Phalarope or swimming plovers.

This region is the habitat for numerous species currently classified under various levels of threat, including the maned wolf, collared peccary, and armadillo.

Mendoza

In the Uspallata Valley, we are supporting Natura Argentina in its goal to create the first National Park in the province of Mendoza, and to strengthen the conservation of the adjoining Defense Natural Reserve.

Uspallata is a stunningly beautiful Andean landscape, comprising more than 80 glaciers, watercourses and high-altitude wetlands (“vegas”), and the headwaters of the Mendoza River. Its ecosystems span the Puna and High Andean ecoregions, characterized by an Andean fauna including the Andean Cat, one of the five most endangered felines in the world.

Uspallata also has a wealth of cultural values related to the original settlers, the Incan empire including a portion of the Inca Road or Qhapaq Ñan, and for its role in the history of the independence of Latin America, as it was here that General José de San Martín made his strategic crossing in 1817 to liberate Chile.

Catamarca

Our partner Natura Argentina has succeeded in working with local governments and communities to protect 370,500 acres of rich cloud forests in the Sierras de Ambato in Catamarca province, with support from ourselves and Word Land Trust.

This ecological corridor protects the iconic Taruca deer, the endangered Black-and-chestnut Eagle, guanacos, foxes and chinchillas, and is key to the protection of essential water basins for the region, as well as important archaeological and cultural sites.

Education workshops held by Natura Argentina with schools and municipalities strengthen local awareness and management capacity, while partnerships with academia and NGOs expand research and governance of the protected areas.

Ecuador: Amazon and Key Biodiversity Habitats

In Ecuador, we support projects to create new protected areas in two of the world’s most biodiverse ecosystems, the Ecuadorian Amazon, and Andean cloud forests, as well as the highly endangered Tumbesian dry forest ecosystem with its many endemic species.

We are supporting our partner Fundación Paisajes Sostenibles-PASOS to create the Santa Elena Provincial System of Protected Areas, which could reach 270,000 acres of provincial and municipal reserves. This area will conserve a major portion of Santa Elena province’s native coastal Tumbesian dry forests, a highly endangered ecosystem recognized for its wide range of endemic species. This area protects most of the province’s water sources, and stores 17 million tons of carbon that contributes to the mitigation of global climate change.
We co-financed the work of Naturaleza y Cultura that led to the creation of the Santiago Municipal Protected Area of more than 32,000 acres, declared in March 2021. The reserve preserves extremely rich cloud forests and is a source of water for 15,000 people.
Our support helped Refugio Paz de las Aves, a privately-owned reserve successfully secure funds for the acquisition of 123 acres of highly biodiverse land in the Andes of Ecuador. This area is a bird lover’s paradise as it hosts spectacular birds like the Giant Antpitta and the Andean Cock-of-the-Rock. To assist further efforts, Natura International is supporting the establishment of the Foundation Paz de las Aves, to advance conservation in this area.

Peru

In Ucayali in central eastern Peru, we are supporting Upper Amazon Conservancy to obtain a title over 66,000 ha (165,000 acres) of Amazon rainforests for the Amahuaca indigenous peoples in central Peru – if successful this would be the first community in “initial contact” to obtain title to its lands in Peru’s history. Our partners are working on eliminating the overlapping claims to the indigenous land and then will advance in completing the titling application process for the Amahuaca people. At the same time, Upper Amazon Conservancy is providing the community with the training and equipment needed to prevent further invasions into their lands.

In the region of Lambayeque, in the north of Peru, we’ve partnered with Conservación del Ojo de Anteojos to help the Salas farming community to designate 24,000 acres of their lands as a private protected area, recognized under Peru’s National System of Protected Areas. The Tumbesian Dry Forest forest where the community lands are located have high biodiversity richness, endemism, and connectivity to other protected areas like the Laquipampa Wildlife Reserve. These ecosystems are the habitat of the threatened Andean Bear (Tremarctos ornatus), which our partner has studied extensively. Our funding will allow SBC to support women-led livelihood activities, delivering specialized training to expand SBC felti weaving program while working with members of the Salas Community board in the process of establishing the protected area, including education, legal and mapping work.