UN recognizes Honduran pioneering initiative that is restoring the natural world

By Bufete Mejía & Asociados

The United Nations has recognized 10 ground-breaking efforts from around the globe for their role in restoring the natural world. The winning initiatives were unveiled at the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) in Montreal on December 13, 2022.

The initiatives were declared World Restoration Flagships and are eligible to receive UN-backed promotion, advice or funding. They were selected under the banner of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, a global movement coordinated by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). It is designed to prevent and reverse the degradation of natural spaces across the planet.

One of the winning initiatives is the Central American Dry Corridor. Exposed to heatwaves and unpredictable rainfall, the ecosystems and peoples of the Central American Dry Corridor are especially vulnerable to climate change. As recently as 2019, a fifth year of drought left 1.2 million people in the region needing food aid.

Tapping traditional farming methods to build the productivity of landscapes, including their biodiversity, is at the heart of this restoration flagship covering six countries: Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Panama.

For example, agroforestry systems integrating tree cover with crops like coffee, cocoa and cardamom can boost soil fertility and water availability while sustaining much of the biodiversity of the original tropical forest.

By 2030, the goal is to have 100,000 hectares under restoration and create 5,000 permanent jobs.