Nature and Culture International

Nature and Culture International (NCI) partners with local governments, communities, and indigenous leaders in the tropical Andes to ensure that tropical forests continue to function as life-support systems for people locally and globally. This grant scales up a successful conservation mechanism to protect water sources and biodiversity, known colloquially as water funds. In Ecuador, NCI’s municipal watershed model has secured biodiversity, clean water resources, and protein-rich fisheries for tens of thousands of people downstream. In 2014, NCI and its partners, including Fundación Natura Bolivia, established a regional initiative called “Watershared,” which expands and consolidates these conservation mechanisms across parts of Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Colombia. The results will protect or improve water quality and flow, habitat, and forest cover over 60,000 hectares and 14 municipalities.