Native Community Sets a New Standard in Conservation

July 22, 2008

July 2, 2008 marked the establishment of the world’s first conservation concession managed by an indigenous group. The Haramba Queros Wachiperi Ecological Reserve protects 6,976 hectares (17,238 acres) of highly biodiverse forest located in the Amazon rainforest of southeastern Peru.

The signing ceremony took place in Lima with Haramba Queros leaders, representatives of Peru’s Natural Resource Agency (INRENA), and members of ACA and ACCA that brokered the agreement.

The Amazonian Haramba Queros are a Harakambut-speaking community of 56 individuals in Madre de Dios, Peru. The conservation concession provides a buffer against the impacts of climate change. It secures the Queros’ water supply and source of medicinal plants, sustains their access to forest products, and serves as a mechanism to help the community maintain their cultural traditions.

The Queros conservation concession is part of the ecological buffer zone for the world-renowned Manú National Park, in Madre de Dios and Cusco, Peru. The concession also sequesters significant reserves of carbon dioxide, which helps slow climate change. The creation of concessions such as the Wachiperi Ecological Reserve will be increasingly important as the global community continues to deal with a changing and unpredictable climate.