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The TCO Monte Verde, a territory of the Chiquitano Indigenous People in Bolivia, maintains 98% forest cover through a combination of indigenous governance and formal forest management plans. Despite facing severe pressures from agricultural expansion, land grabbing, and massive forest fires in 2024, the territory serves as a critical barrier to deforestation in the Chiquitanía region. Conservation is driven by cultural identity, the need for water security, and the goal of preserving resources for future generations. While sustainable logging provides primary income, the community is exploring non-timber forest products and carbon markets to diversify their economy and further protect the forest.

The document examines the synergy between agroextractive settlements (PAEs) and community fishing agreements in the Lower Amazon, specifically focusing on PAE Lago Grande and APes Curuai. It highlights how these hybrid governance structures support biodiversity and traditional livelihoods but are threatened by land tenure insecurity, illegal mining, and insufficient state monitoring. The report argues that recognizing such areas as Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (OECM/OMEC) could strengthen territorial defense and inclusive conservation.

The document examines how traditional communities in western Bahia, such as the Fecho de Pasto Clemente and Beira Rio, maintain the Cerrado biome through sustainable practices like extensive cattle grazing. It highlights the severe threats posed by industrial agribusiness, including land grabbing and water depletion, and argues that formal recognition of these territories as Omecs or TICCAs is essential for inclusive conservation and social justice.

The document examines three private natural reserves in Brazil (Legado das Águas, Reserva Natural Vale, and Parque das Neblinas) as models of private sector contribution to biodiversity conservation. It details their histories, governance, and ecological impacts, while discussing the challenges of social inclusion and the potential for these areas to be recognized as OECMs to support global and national biodiversity targets.

The document examines two Sesc São Paulo units—Sesc Bertioga and Sesc Interlagos—as models for private conservation with public interest. Sesc Bertioga manages 384.43 hectares, including high restinga forests and areas overlapping with the Serra do Mar State Park, while Sesc Interlagos has recovered approximately 18 hectares of Atlantic Forest in a dense urban setting. Both sites integrate environmental conservation with social services, offering education, sports, and culture to the local population. The study identifies that several areas within these units, which are not formal conservation units (UC), meet the criteria for OECMs due to their in situ biodiversity. It recommends formalizing this recognition, developing integrated strategic plans, and strengthening the link between nature and public health to enhance urban quality of life.

The La Ilusión Natural Reserve is a 44-hectare private area in El Rosal, Cundinamarca, that transformed degraded cattle pastures into a high-Andean cloud forest sanctuary. Recognized in 2021 as Colombia's first OECM, the reserve focuses on ecological restoration, biodiversity protection, and community integration. Managed by a family through the Fundación El Bosque y La Niebla, it employs a participatory governance model that includes local peasants and academic partnerships. The reserve is notable for pioneering 'Relational Forest Therapy' in Colombia to foster socio-ecological reconciliation. While facing threats from intensive agriculture and poaching, it seeks to expand its impact through the 'Rizoma' project to create biological corridors with neighboring farms and aims to access Payments for Environmental Services (PES) to ensure long-term financial sustainability.

The Sapara Nation in Ecuador manages 322,029 hectares of high-biodiversity rainforest through a spiritual cosmovision and traditional governance. While the community of Llanchamacocha has established strict conservation zones like Kamunguishi and sustainable ecotourism via the Naku project, they face significant threats from oil exploration (specifically blocks 79 and 83), illegal logging, and internal fragmentation. State-led incentive programs like Socio Bosque (PSB) have provided financial support but also triggered internal conflicts over benefit distribution. The document argues that long-term conservation requires full legal land titling, respect for Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), and financing mechanisms that align with indigenous spiritual values and autonomy.

The Mancomunidad del Chocó Andino (MCA) in Ecuador manages a 124,000-hectare mosaic of conservation areas, including private reserves and biosphere components, to protect high biodiversity against extractive threats. While the MCA employs a participatory governance model involving local governments and community networks, it faces significant challenges from state-led mining concessions, land tenure insecurity, and fragmented financing. The document argues that the OECM framework could strengthen the MCA by providing legal recognition of local control and facilitating access to sustainable funding, provided it avoids top-down administrative burdens.

The report examines Bolivia's conservation landscape, highlighting a tension between formal state strategies and local practices. While Bolivia has a robust system of protected areas and land tenure, conservation outside these areas is often hindered by state priorities favoring extractivism and agribusiness. The document argues that indigenous territories and community-led initiatives offer significant potential for OECM recognition, provided that the state shifts toward a more inclusive, less bureaucratic, and better-funded support system that aligns with local livelihoods.

The report examines the potential for implementing OECMs (meccs) in Brazil to achieve the '30x30' biodiversity goals. It analyzes various spatial mechanisms, including protected areas (UCs), Indigenous lands (TIs), Quilombola territories (TQs), and private lands. The document highlights that while formal protected areas are established, significant conservation occurs in traditional territories and private lands that lack formal recognition. It identifies land tenure insecurity as a primary obstacle to inclusive conservation and proposes that the mecc framework be used to prioritize land regularization for traditional peoples and communities (PCTs). The report concludes with recommendations to integrate meccs with social policies, ensure equitable governance, and provide technical and financial support to local actors.

The report examines Colombia's transition from a centralized conservation model to an inclusive approach that recognizes the role of Indigenous peoples, local communities, and private landowners. It evaluates the current state of the National System of Protected Areas (SINAP) and the emerging framework of OECMs, identifying systemic barriers such as land tenure insecurity, armed conflict, and an extractivist development model. Through case studies of private, Afro-descendant, and Indigenous territories, the document highlights that effective conservation often stems from cultural and spiritual motivations rather than economic incentives. It concludes with recommendations to harmonize land tenure rights, close the environmental financing gap, and integrate OECMs into national territorial planning to meet the global 30x30 biodiversity target.

The report examines Ecuador's conservation landscape, highlighting the tension between a strong legal framework for biodiversity and a dominant extractivist economic model. It evaluates various conservation modalities, including the SNAP and OECMs, and argues that for OECMs to be truly inclusive, they must move beyond symbolic recognition to provide tangible benefits, secure land tenure, and respect the self-determination of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

The report examines Mexico's progress toward the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework's '30x30' goal, focusing on the potential of OECMs to complement existing Protected Natural Areas (ANP). It identifies that while Mexico has a strong legal framework for social land ownership (ejidos and communities), inclusive conservation is hindered by state failure to enforce Indigenous rights, contradictory public policies, and budget cuts. The document details various conservation modalities, such as Wildlife Management Units (UMA) and Community Forest Management (MFC), and uses three case studies to highlight local motivations for conservation, primarily linked to water security and sustainable livelihoods. It concludes that for OECMs to be effective and inclusive, Mexico must establish transparent recognition processes, align agricultural subsidies with conservation incentives, and ensure the free, prior, and informed consent of local rights-holders.

The report examines Peru's conservation landscape, identifying a significant reliance on the National System of State Natural Protected Areas (SINANPE) while exploring the potential of OECMs to include indigenous peoples, local communities, and private actors. It identifies critical threats such as illegal mining and deforestation, and highlights a tension between conservation policies and extractivist state actions. The document proposes a roadmap for operationalizing OECMs through improved enabling conditions, tailored incentives, and multi-level collaborative governance.

The document examines Ejido Noh-Bec, a 24,122-hectare community-managed forest in Quintana Roo, Mexico. It highlights the ejido's transition from external concessions to self-management, its achievement of FSC certification, and its resilience following Hurricane Dean in 2007. The study details a governance model involving an Assembly and an inclusive Advisory Council, as well as a diversified economy based on sustainable timber, chicle extraction, and ecotourism. While the ejido maintains a 1,200-hectare conservation reserve called 'El Huasteco,' it faces challenges from climate-related extreme weather, illegal logging linked to the Tren Maya project, and bureaucratic hurdles regarding CITES and carbon credit schemes.

The document details the transition of Rancho La Inmaculada de los Aguirre from a fully cleared cattle ranch to a holistic management model that integrates regenerative livestock farming, silviculture, and wildlife conservation. It highlights the ecological recovery of the soil and vegetation, the financial sustainability of the diversified production model, and the challenges posed by government inefficiency and regional insecurity. The study suggests that involving family in governance and seeking international recognition through the OECM framework could ensure the long-term continuity of these conservation efforts.

The Punta Balcones Environmental Conservation Area (ACA), created in October 2023 in the La Brea district of Peru, covers 913.39 hectares of critical marine-coastal biodiversity, including the westernmost point of South America. While it offers a mechanism for local municipal management and potential ecotourism development, the area faces significant legal gaps, a lack of an active Management Committee, and severe environmental threats from hydrocarbon legacy pollution and land invasions. Current efforts are driven by the Municipality of La Brea, the Regional Government of Piura, and youth volunteers from DISLAB, but sustainable management is hindered by limited local capacity and the absence of updated municipal planning instruments.

The Bosque Local Señor de la Cumbre (BLSC), established in 2020 in Madre de Dios, Peru, covers 3,179.41 hectares and is critical for the water supply of Puerto Maldonado. Managed by the Municipality of Inambari, the area faces severe threats from illegal mining, agricultural expansion, and selective logging. While a Payment for Ecosystem Services (MERESE) mechanism is in place to fund conservation and sustainable production, the site lacks a formal management plan and a functional Management Committee. Local stakeholders identify ecotourism and agroforestry as sustainable economic alternatives, but emphasize the need for stronger institutional capacity, legal security, and better access to financing to sustain conservation efforts.

The report examines the 'renewable energy–land nexus', noting that while renewables are essential for climate mitigation, they generally require more land than fossil fuels. It advocates for siting energy systems on degraded land and implementing dual-land-use strategies to create synergistic benefits for soil health, water management, and community resilience.

The Amazonia Viva Program is a large-scale initiative requesting 200 million USD from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and 699.47 million USD in co-financing from the World Bank to protect the Amazon biome. The program targets a total of 3 million beneficiaries, including 993,609 direct beneficiaries, and aims to mitigate 8,468,951 tCO2eq over 20 years. It is structured into three components: National Programs and Actions, Regional Cooperation, and Program Management. Key interventions include securing land tenure, restoring degraded lands, promoting agroforestry, and strengthening transboundary governance and climate monitoring. The program specifically focuses on vulnerable groups, including Indigenous Peoples and Afro-descendants, who manage nearly 50% of the Amazon's territories.