A proposed conservation area will seek to build agreements with indigenous communities to protect their territories in Ayacucho.
Photo credit: Gerson Ferrer | Yunkawasi.
The National Service for State-Protected Natural Areas (Sernanp) has signed to move forward to the third stage of the proposal for the Mayunmarca Cloud Forests Regional Conservation Area (ACR). Photo credit: Gerson Ferrer | Yunkawasi.
The proposal for the Munyamarca Cloud Forests Regional Conservation Area has entered the third phase of its establishment process. The aim is to strengthen dialogue and reach agreements with local stakeholders and indigenous communities regarding the zoning of this future protected area. This process forms part of the path towards establishing a new Regional Conservation Area (ACR), which recognises the rights, uses and activities of the people inhabiting the territory while safeguarding water sources, biodiversity and the traditional territories of Mayunmarca in Ayacucho.
The National Service for State-Protected Natural Areas (Sernanp) approved the proposal for the Mayunmarca Cloud Forests Regional Conservation Area (ACR), allowing it to progress to the third stage of the establishment process. Following a review of the technical dossier and progress made by the Ayacucho Regional Government with support from Yunkawasi, the initiative has taken another step towards protecting one of Ayacucho’s most biodiverse landscapes.
With more than 45,000 hectares of cloud forests, high-Andean grasslands, and watershed headwaters, the proposed area aims to conserve one of the region’s most important landscapes for water and biodiversity. Located in the province of La Mar, in the districts of Anco, Chungui, and Oronccoy, it will be the first regional protected area to conserve a representative sample of the Peruvian Yungas ecoregion in this department.
As part of the requirements to complete the second stage, the Regional Government of Ayacucho, in coordination with the Ministry of Culture, prepared the Report on the Identification of Indigenous and Native Peoples (IIPIO). This process identified communities belonging to the Quechua and Matsigenka peoples, eight of which overlap with or utilize land within the proposed ACR. Based on this information, it will be possible to continue the dialogue with the communities, recognize their land-use practices, and establish clear agreements, promoting a conservation model that manages the territory while respecting the activities that sustain local life.
The progress of the Mayunmarca Cloud Forests ACR proposal reflects a joint effort led by the Regional Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Management of the Ayacucho Regional Government, with guidance from Yunkawasi and support from the Andes Amazon Fund and the Conserva Aves Initiative in Peru. This collaboration is carried out through the project “Participatory Conservation of the Tropical Andes in the Department of Ayacucho,” which promotes living territories where biodiversity, water, and communities are protected collectively.
Conserva Aves is a partnership between the American Bird Conservancy (ABC), the National Audubon Society, BirdLife International, Birds Canada, and the Latin America and the Caribbean Network of Environmental Funds (RedLAC). In Peru, it is implemented by Profonanpe in partnership with the Andean Ecosystems Association (ECOAN). It also receives financial support from the Government of Canada through Global Affairs Canada (GAC).