Welcome: Presenting the restoration in Colombia.
Hi. Welcome to our very first newsletter. We’re excited to use this platform to share some exclusive insight about impact investing, nature-based solutions and much more.
If you’re new to NatureRe, here is a quick introduction. We’re a Swiss-based asset management fund that combines leading experience in nature restoration and rigorous impact investment expertise. Our mission is to profitably restore nature and remove carbon at scale. We invest in Natural Climate Solutions in Colombia and will extend our project in LATAM in 2024.
With only 7 to 8 years before we reach +1.5 degrees and 6 out of 9 planetary boundaries already crossed, securing a sustainable and regenerative environment has become imperative for human, economic and planetary thriving. In order to fight this climate and biodiversity crisis, NatureRe has decided to focus on nature and sustainable investments. Worldwide, 94 billion euros of capital has already been raised towards climate action (SDG 13) and Nature Climate Solutions could deliver 1/3 of net emission reductions required by 2030. To preserve Earth’s resources, financial resources for biodiversity, including carbon markets, biodiversity credits and financial products, need to increase.
In collaboration with our operational partners South Pole , NatureRe Capital AG is currently regenerating 60% of 700 hectares in Antioquia, Colombia, the rest being intact and used as a “flora and fauna natural reserve”. The goals is to sustainably manage 4,500 hectares of livestock-degraded, of which 2,925 have the potential to be restored. More than 220 flora species are currently being threatened, 22 being “critically endangered”. This is why restoring the ecosystem is urgent and paramount.
Actively working with our local team on site and our local partners, we use a variety of restoration techniques to assist natural regrowth. As land has been previously used for cattle ranching, we started by eliminating stressors, enabling the ecosystem to regain its productivity.
In areas with lower regeneration potential, we established endemic species native to the zone, chosen to have a high potential to promote recovery in tropical rainforests. Among them, the famous “Ceiba”, one of the most stunning Colombian tree which can grow up to 70 meters high, or “El cedro”, one of the most common tree in Colombia.
We installed 21 monitoring stations in different areas of the lands to capture the restoration progress and indicate the presence of animals. We identified the Crax alberti, a species of birds endemic to Colombia and listed as Critically Endangered in the IUCN Red List. According to the IUCN, there are only between 1,000 and 2,500 mature individuals of this species in the world. We also captured pictures of various mammals, including Leopardus pardalis, a wild cat also known as an ocelot.
Beyond forests, we protect regional and continental corridors. The area in restoration is part of The Jaguar Conservation Corridor, an initiative seeking to connect jaguar populations of Central and South America by allowing them to move from one area to another. The pin on the map below show the expansion area in the the Nordeste, Bajo Cauca, and Magdalena Medio subregions of Antioquia, all part of the Jaguar Continental Connectivity Corridor. With 50% of the species’ original range having been lost due to illegal poaching, human-jaguar conflict and loss and fragmentation of habitat, this initiative allows for the protection of the species and the ecosystem.
All these initiatives have a net positive biodiversity impact. They preserve, and even increase the wealth and the habitat of wild fauna and flora, increase ecological connectivity, and even contribute to the maintenance of hydro-biological quality of the basins supplying rural aqueducts.
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