Conserving Biodiversity and Building Peace in Colombia: Solving Socio-Environmental Conflicts in Protected Areas through Peaceful Means Enhances Biodiversity Conservation and Peacebuilding

Dec 18, 2021 | Héctor Morales Muñoz and Julia Gorricho
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Recent studies have found that protected areas can support peaceful and inclusive societies by helping to maintain environmental stability, thus providing a framework for good governance and human security. 

However, the unrest in Colombia following the agreement (which has included assassinations and threats to socio-environmental leaders)[vii] presents new challenges and reduces the potential impacts of natural conservation work on peacebuilding. As an example, natural areas that were restricted previously due to security reasons are increasingly accessible, resulting in increasing deforestation by 50 per cent (about 238,000 ha) across the Andes-Amazon Transition Belt.

WWF’s case shows how biodiversity conservation in PAs contributes to addressing root causes and socio-environmental conflicts between farmers and park rangers by providing spaces for dialogue to deal with disputes in a peaceful manner. The results show that international organizations and local partners play a key role in facilitating dialogue in environmental (local) governance structures. Such structures are key to institutionalizing mechanisms to solve conflicts by peaceful means.