La Paz, Bolivia
General Objective: To initiate a process of joint articulation between networks of professionals interested in the application of the concept of 'environmental services' within programs of conservation and sustainable use of natural resources in Ibero-American countries.
Event Results: The degradation of the environment that sustains human life through crucial environmental services, such as the regulation of hydrological cycles, the benefits of biological diversity, and the climate-regulating capacity of forests, represents a threat to the quality of life in many rural and urban areas of Ibero-American countries and globally. However, innovative environmental conservation initiatives based on incentives, mainly for the protection of watersheds, have emerged in the region.
Among the professionals from 13 countries gathered at this congress, there was a consensus that the conservation of environmental services requires the incorporation of financial mechanisms that complement environmental policy programs at all administrative levels.
As a contribution to the discussion on the topic, three main challenges were identified:
1. The adaptation and suitability of existing legal frameworks to enable flexible solutions tailored to the various actions for the conservation of environmental services and local conditions.
2. Strengthening the institutions responsible for formulating and implementing environmental policies, promoting coordination between these and civil society, and enabling transparency and participation. Additionally, involving other government sectors responsible for formulating development policies in harmony with environmental policies.
3. Ensuring that conservation incentives generate sustainable and equitable local development processes.
The 1st Congress of Environmental Services Networks in Ibero-America concluded that existing environmental services networks can complement each other for joint activities of knowledge-transfer, management at a regional level, and supporting decision-makers in facing these challenges. This Congress represented the first step towards the realization of a collaborative strategy between the networks.