Protecting Coastal Watersheds in Mexico Yields Many Benefits GEF
go to original October 22, 2022

Mexico: Coastal protection, Aztec-style (DW News)

Mexico belongs to an elite club: it is one of the world’s 17 megadiverse countries, with some 12 percent of the world’s species found within its borders.

However the geography of this nature-rich land flanked by the Gulf of California and the Gulf of Mexico also makes it highly vulnerable to climate-linked disasters.

This is particularly true on its coasts, where watershed areas and their inhabitants face serious peril from increasingly severe hurricanes and storms, droughts, and forest fires.

Fortunately, the country’s defenses against deforestation, land degradation, and species loss in these sensitive ecosystems have been fortified by a collaborative initiative funded by the Global Environment Facility and led by the World Bank.

The goal of the project “Conservation of Coastal Watersheds in the Context of Changing Environments” was to promote the conservation of protected areas and support sustainable locally-run agroforestry through improved management of the coastal watersheds surrounding them.

The intervention was critically needed.

Without steps to counteract environmental damage, research suggested that Mexico’s coastal regions could lose 35 percent of their rainforest cover and 18 percent of their temperate forests, along with significant biodiversity.

From its earliest stages, the GEF-funded initiative promoted an inclusive approach to addressing deforestation and species loss.

Three government agencies – the National Commission for Protected Areas, the National Forestry Commission, the National Institute of Ecology and Climate Change – worked closely together, from project design through to roll-out. The public-private partnership also included the privately run Mexican Fund for the Conservation of Nature.

They worked together to advance specific efforts to promote climate resilience, sustainable land use, and planet-friendly ways to earn a living, such as honey and pepper production, eco-friendly cattle ranching, and adventure tourism.

The project’s true measure of success, however, was the enormous engagement of local communities that could benefit from these changes in land use and livelihoods.

More than 16,000 coastal watershed inhabitants – 20 percent of them Indigenous – took part in workshops held over the four-year span of the project. These sessions bolstered knowledge and skills vital for resilience and, importantly, raised local understanding of the role nature plays in their community’s economic and physical well-being.

As they learned more, residents became increasingly proud of the wealth of nature in the river basins around them and committed to the project’s success. They were active participants in specific initiatives as well as the project’s monitoring work, which will feed into development of watershed action plans to inform future activities.

By every measure, the project met or exceeded its goals.

Read the rest at GEF

Related: New Guide to Decolonize Language in Conservation Launched (Survival International)

Related: Worldwide, 80 Percent of Cities Faced Climate Risk in 2022 (Triple Pundit)

  Learn about Mexican Fund for Nature Conservation

  Learn about Fideicomiso Estero el Salado

  Learn about El Cora Crocodile Sanctuary

  Learn about COBI - Rebels of the Sea

  Learn about Costa Verde Sustainable Resource Center

  Learn about Grupo Ecologico de Puerto Vallarta

  Learn about The Nature Conservancy México

  Learn about Agua Libre Foundation