wildlands conservation

CONSERVING THE WORLD'S MOST CRITICAL HABITATS

GWC's Acre For Nature program focuses on conserving the last habitats for the world's most endangered species. Currently, focal projects are in Guatemala, Colombia, and Sri Lanka, with developing projects in other critical areas of the world.

GWC is a member of the Alliance for Zero Extinction (AZE), a global initiative of biodiversity conservation organizations that aims to prevent extinctions by identifying and safeguarding key sites where species are in imminent danger of disappearing. The goal of the Alliance is to create a front line of defense against extinction by eliminating threats and restoring habitat to allow species populations to rebound.

Sierra Caral, Guatemala

The Sierra Caral of Guatemala is one of the world’s top priorities for conservation, and the single most important biodiverse areas in the country. Extending southwest from near the Caribbean along the border with Honduras, the Sierra Caral’s remaining forests are home to many endangered species. Foremost due to their endemicity, are the 12 amphibians classified as threatened with extinction on the World Conservation Union’s Red List of Threatened Species, with five of them listed as Critically Endangered. Three of these are salamander species found only in the remaining forests of the Sierra Caral, and five of the threatened frogs are found only in Guatemala. New amphibian species, probably more endemics, are anticipated from the Sierra Caral, if the global conservation community can secure the forests before they are lost.

The largest tract of remaining forest in the Sierra Caral, 5,682 acres, is in imminent risk of being lost. Cattle barons have already purchased properties adjacent to these forests and clear-cut them for pasture land. Within the past year, these barons have bought a tract of forest known as Quebradas. The conservation community had been working for over 2 years to raise the funds to buy this specific parcel, which was known to harbor populations of several threatened species.

This is where Global Wildlife Conservation enters with its Acre For Nature Program. This program allows individuals or organizations to donate funds to go directly towards the purchase of acreage within the designated 5,682 acre parcel of land. The total cost per acre is USD 176, calculated based upon the purchase price of the entire parcel. Each donor will eventually be able to enter GWC’s website and identify the exact acre(s) that their contribution went to preserve.