Research and Action in the Andean Bear Corridor
Deforestation rates in the Andes, where Andean (Spectacled) Bears live, are among the highest on the planet, with land being clear to make way for farming. We are a team of researchers at the University of Sussex exploring and supporting innovative ways for wildlife and local communities to thrive together.
(Photos of community meetings)
Working alongside our Ecuadorian partner Fundación Cambugan in the Paso Alto region, part of the Andean Bear Corridor (a 250 mile stretch along the spine of the Andes, running between Ecuador and Peru), we focus on communities at the edge of Protected Forest areas.
Our network of 15 camera traps has identified more than 16 individual bears within the first few months of the project, including cubs, confirming the vital importance of this region to the population. We have therefore doubled the number of cameras, and hope to double it again within the next 12 months.
(Photographs from our network of camera traps)
The project began with exploring vanilla production in forests, as an alternative to clearing natural vegetation for farming. Vanilla is native to Ecuador and Peru, and is quite literally worth its weight in gold. We are also exploring the other resources that forests might offer local people, for example as medicines or building material, as well as measuring its benefits to the world generally, as a carbon store, and as a biodiversity mega-hotspot.
There may also be legal processes that could help. Many local people lack the legal title to the land they live on. We are therefore working with local communities and lawyers to develop land title cases to present to the government ministries. This should help to protect the Andean Bear since the Environmental Ministry of Ecuador requires a landowners to agree to restoring 60% of the landcover to forest as part of the land-title agreement.
Finally, Ecuador is unusual in having the Rights of Nature formally recognised within its constitution, so we are exploring the potential for this legal framework to protect both the Andean Bear and its habitats.
Our Ecuadorian Partner The Cambugán Foundation
The Team
Prof. Fiona Mathews
Fiona is a Professor of Environmental Biology. She has a wealth of experience monitoring wildlife in both the UK and African and Latin American contexts. She also focuses on researching practical solutions to conservation problems.
Dr. Joanna Smallwood
Joanna is a Senior Lecturer in Law who has a long standing interest in nature conservation, animal rights and law. Before joining Sussex she worked in the legal department at Friends of the Earth and as a solicitor at Leigh, Day & Co. in London.
Dr. Evan Killick
Evan is a Social Anthropologist with over two decades of experience working with forest-based communities across Latin America.
Dr. Alexander Antonarakis
Alex is a Reader in Global Change Ecology. His research is centered on the interface of terrestrial ecology, land use and climate change, in relation to forest ecosystems.
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