Mexico

Protecting nature to support biodiversity and livelihoods

From offices in Mexico City, Oaxaca and Chiapas, Conservation International-Mexico works with local and national partners to promote the sustainable management of nature for the benefit of Mexico.

In Oaxaca and Chiapas, we are helping restore thousands of hectares of forests by strengthening incentives for local communities to keep trees standing. We are also helping improve management of the region’s biodiversity, implementing monitoring for at-risk species and expanding protected areas. And throughout Oaxaca, Chiapas and the Yucatan Peninsula, we are developing sustainable financial models for the agroforestry sector that benefit small-scale growers and drive investment in projects that reduce deforestation.

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1990

YEAR FOUNDED

7.2M

PEOPLE

dependent on nature in Mexico¹

472M

METRIC TONS

of irrecoverable carbon in Mexico²

1,013

VERTEBRATE SPECIES

that are endemic to Mexico³

Areas we work

Protecting threatened species in southern Mexico

In the southern states of Oaxaca and Chiapas, Conservation International-Mexico is working to combat species loss in some of the country's most remarkable ecosystems.

Our conservation efforts are focused on 15 species of plants and animals — including the endangered Mexican spider monkey — which face threats from agricultural development, a warming climate and the illegal wildlife trade. We're helping to protect these at-risk species by expanding protected areas, establishing systems to monitor species health and population, building out environmental education programs that link biodiversity and human well-being, and working with stakeholders to reduce the impact of agriculture on vital ecosystems.

Our work in Oaxaca and Chiapas is part of a “sustainable landscapes approach” that seeks to uplift local communities while protecting biodiversity, ultimately helping to conserve one-fifth of the region's globally important species.

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
30x30 SkyTruth. (2024, October). Marine Conservation Coverage. https://30x30.skytruth.org/progress-tracker?layers=6,144,7,145&settings=%7B%2522bbox%2522:%5B-167.96,-61.4,167.96,61.4%5D,%2522labels%2522:true%7D