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La Cristalina Nature Reserve wins the 2026 BIBO Award

The project led by the Córdoba Ornithological Society in Alto Sinú was recognized in the “Community Processes that Restore Peace with Nature” category.

La Cristalina Nature Reserve, located in Tierralta (Córdoba, Colombia), was recognized in the 2026 edition of El Espectador’s BIBO Award, one of the country’s most prestigious recognitions for environmental management. The award was received by Kevin Carrera, director of the reserve, during the ceremony held on August 20. The project competed among 103 submissions, 43 of which reached the semifinals and 16 advanced to the final round.

Behind this recognition lies a process built step by step. La Cristalina protects 272 hectares of tropical rainforest in the transition zone between the Caribbean lowlands and the San Jerónimo mountain range, within the Chocó Biogeographic Region. Nearly 16% of Colombia’s bird species have been recorded in the area, including 19 endemic species and 58 threatened species. There, the Córdoba Ornithological Society (SOC) and its partners documented the country’s first confirmed Crested Eagle (Morphnus guianensis) nest, where a chick named Millo was born in 2023.

The creation of the reserve in 2024 was supported by Conserva Aves—a hemispheric initiative led by American Bird Conservancy, Audubon, BirdLife International, Birds Canada, and RedLAC, with support from the Bezos Earth Fund—alongside other partners who contributed to the purchase of the property and its consolidation.

“I invite you to keep making a difference. It can be done,” said Hugo Vides of the SOC as he shared the news.

This award celebrates the sustained efforts of a community and the partnerships that make them possible. It is also a reminder that conservation moves forward when people work together to protect territories and their biodiversity.