Working Together for the Nevados de Chillán – Laguna del Laja Biological Corridor in Central Chile

Fundación Tierra Austral was honored to be a part of recent Nevados de Chillán – Laguna del Laja, Biosphere Reserve Biological Corridor Summit, attended this important event. In 2011, the corridor was recognized by UNESCO as a Biosphere Reserve. Directora Ejecutiva de la Fundación.

The Summit brought together 150 representatives from the public, private, academic, and civil society sectors of the Ñuble and Biobío regions. The participants share the powerful goal of strengthening and expanding efforts to protect the extraordinary Nevados de Chillán – Laguna del Laja Biological Corridor, to encourage the participation in this work by local communities.

The Summit featured sessions with working groups that focused on six core issues: a governance model for conseration of the corridor; sustainable land uses in the region; land use planning; and the essential role of communities in the corridor and region. The organizers of the Summit will now draft summaries of the working groups’ discussions, which will include next steps and priorities.

Tierra Austral was particularly interested in participating in the Summit because the conservation of the Nevados de Chillán – Laguna del Laja Biological Corridor is a priority for our organization. This is a beautiful landscape of great ecological significance as a transition zone between the Chile-Mediterranean habitat of Central Chile and the temperate forests of the south. We are excited about the opportunities to work with both the Ñuble Regional Government and with members of the local community to forge conservation strategies that balance land conservation with sustainable land uses.