Protected areas are simply the single most important tool that we have available to use both for ensuring the long-term survival of global biodiversity and for safeguarding the continued flow of ecosystem services essential to our own long-term well-being.
Over the past ten years, GWC has worked to conserve wildlife and habitat in over 40 countries and helped establish over 20 new nature reserves, home to over 100 endangered species and 20,000 species overall.
40+
Countries
20+
New nature reserves
100+
Endangered species
GWC's Creating Protected Areas solution aims to increase the amount of conserved land and water by establishing new government protected areas, indigenous managed territories and private protected areas.
How We're Protecting
Our Natural Resources
Global Wildlife Conservation sets up all types of protected areas. We identify and prioritize wildlands that would benefit from protected area creation by evaluating biodiversity, including Key Biodiversity Areas and IUCN Red List information, threat level and opportunities for engagement. We then work to create new protected areas either through direct land purchase with partners, community agreements with indigenous communities or government agreements.
In partnership with local and international organizations, GWC has helped establish nearly 30 new protected areas in 17 countries in the Americas, Africa, Asia, Australia and Oceania.
Our Work in Action
We teamed up with several partners to create the first private nature reserve in Haiti. Along with Rainforest Trust, Temple University, Haiti National Trust and Société Audubon Haiti, GWC secured 1,200 acres on Grand Bois mountain, home to 68 species, including several threatened with extinction.
South Suriname Conservation Corridor (Suriname)
This area covers an amazing 17.8 million acres, including the entire southern border with Brazil. It combines with adjacent land in neighboring countries to create a conservation area roughly the size of Florida. We work with the government of Suriname and the Wayana and Trio indigenous communities to ensure they are empowered to protect and manage the forests that they call come while improving livelihood conditions.
Bolson Tortoise Reserve (Mexico)
In partnership with the Turtle Conservancy and the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, GWC purchased 43,540 acres of threatened Chihuahuan Desert habitat in the unique Bolson de Mapimí basin in northern Mexico. Together, we’re protecting numerous imperiled species of desert wildflowers, cactus, birds, bats, lizards, snakes and the largest terrestrial reptile in North America, the Critically Endangered Bolson Tortoise.
Las Tangaras Reserve (Colombia)
We established the Las Tangaras Reserve - with Rainforest Trust and Fundación ProAves – to protect a key portion of Colombia’s Chocó rainforest. This rainforest contains one of the highest concentrations of biodiversity on the planet, with many birds, plants and amphibians at risk of extinction. We’re investigating potential expansion with the long-term goal of converting this land into a departmental park.
Cleopatra's Needle (Philippines)
100,000 acres of forest on the island of Palawan was declared a Critical Habitat in 2016 after a three-year effort to ensure its protection. The island includes almost 300 members of the Batak tribe and some of the most unspoiled and oldest forests on the planet. This is the largest critical habitat in the Philippines.
Types of Protected Areas
We use the IUCN’s classification system for defining protected areas.
