South America’s ‘lab’ for nature conservation
Established in 1987 as Conservation International’s first field office, Conservation International-Bolivia works to protect nature in one of the most biodiverse countries in the world. We collaborate with government and Indigenous partners to strengthen protected areas in the Amazon while supporting communities’ livelihoods and well-being.
In 1988, Conservation International-Bolivia spearheaded the world’s first debt-for-nature swap — an innovative financial mechanism that helps countries fund the protection of nature. The swap secured the protection of some 1.6 million hectares (4 million acres) of rainforest in the Bolivian Amazon that is home to Indigenous communities, endangered wildlife and more species of birds than all North America.
Nearly 40 years later, debt-for-nature swaps are a mainstay of global conservation. And Bolivia has become a laboratory of sorts for the protection of nature, field-testing ideas that would eventually spread around the world — from ecotourism to municipal leadership in creating protected areas.
We work closely with Indigenous peoples to promote the sustainable use of natural resources and ensure a healthy Amazon for all.
1987
YEAR FOUNDED
1.2M
PEOPLE
dependent on nature in Bolivia1
1.3B
METRIC TONS
of irrecoverable carbon in Bolivia2
137
VERTEBRATE SPECIES
that are endemic to Bolivia3
Areas we work
Protecting pristine ecosystems in the Bolivian Amazon
In 2019, Conservation International-Bolivia partnered with the municipal government of Bolivia’s Ixiamas province to create the Bajo Madidi Municipal Conservation and Management Area. Located in Bolivia’s northwestern corner, Bajo Madidi conserves more than 1.5 million hectares (3.7 million acres) of rainforest, savanna and wetlands in the Bolivian Amazon Some 70 percent of Bajo Madidi consists of intact tropical forest and unspoiled savanna, ecosystems that store large amounts of planet-warming carbon and play an important role in mitigating climate change. The area is also home to more than 20 endangered wildlife species, including the giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis), and large numbers of Brazil nut trees, which are harvested by local communities.
Our team worked closely with local communities and Indigenous peoples to define the scope of the protected area, which links several adjacent nature reserves to create a large network of protected or Indigenous-held lands within the Amazon.
References
- Fedele, G., Donatti, C. I., Bornacelly, I., & Hole, D. G. (2021). Nature-dependent people: Mapping human direct use of nature for basic needs across the tropics. ScienceDirect, 71. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2021.102368
- Conservation International (2021, November). Irrecoverable Carbon. Retrieved January 2025, from https://www.conservation.org/irrecoverable-carbon
- The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. (2024). Table 8a: Total, threatened, and EX & EW endemic species in each country [Fact sheet]. https://www.iucnredlist.org/resources/summary-statistics#Summary%20Tables