initiatives

We have been operating in the upper Mamoní River valley, Panama since 2021, and are now registered as a community-based organization with MiAmbiente Cultura in Panama. Below, we highlight our portfolio of initiatives on the ground, roughly organized by strategic priority.

Direct conservation

Drone image over the González family plot in Real del Gato, Madroño (2022)

Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES)

In 2022 we launched a Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) program directed at smallholders in the upper Mamoní River valley. Through this program, we compensate small landowners for allowing the forest to grow, starting with gallery forests (beyond the buffer zone) and contiguous forests that are at risk of deforestation. CLICK HERE TO MAKE TAX-DEDUCTIBLE CONTRIBUTIONS TO OUR LOCAL PAYMENT FOR ECOSYSTEM SERVICES PROGRAM VIA THE GLOBAL GIVING PLATFORM.

Satellite image of the Caracol Basin

Caracol Basin Restoration Project

At the local level, there are very few wetlands: fertile flat areas that flood and host various organisms from the surrounding forest. The Caracol Watershed Restoration Project is a collaboration between Amigos del Bosque OBC and the Geoversity Foundation to restore a one square mile wetland located in Madroño. We raised $60,000 to purchase the 76-acre Caracol Watershed from our neighbors, the González family, who used the funds to improve their family home in the area. We manage the regeneration of the Caracol, lead biodiversity data collection, and monitor reforestation. FUNDING FOR THIS PROJECT HAS BEEN SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED.

Sustainable economic opportunity

Artesanos del Bosque learning journey to Panama City (Zenith, 2021)

Artesanos del Bosque

We cultivate and invest in the capacity of artesans in Madroño and Mamoní as individuals and as a group to enhance economic opportunities in this valley, which is rich in natural resources but low in financial resources. They sell their products at the local Centro Mamoní, at our annual event Rugido del Mamoní, at the US Embassy Bazaar, and in several stores in Panama City.

Reunion grupo Ecoturismo del valle de Madroño (2024)

Ecoturismo valle de Madroño

We are facilitating a new group of residents who are interested in promoting sustainable tourism in the upper Mamoni River valley. This year, the group is focused on creating a tourist map of Madroño, improving signage, and advocating for road improvements. They are supporting the Rugido del Mamoní trailrun and also plan a field trip to invite students from Chepo to explore their forest in Madroño.

RUGIDO DEL MAMONÍ

We host a 10k and 28k trailrunning event right here in the valley, whose objectives are to promote ecoturism and awareness of the ecological importance of the valley. In its inaugural year (2024), the Rugido attracted 88 runners and 150 visitors; in its second year, it attracted 101 runners and over 200 visitors, as well as 22 partners from the community and nationally. The event brought in over $1,700 in revenues for local households, and over $400 for our educational programming. We look forward to continuing this new annual tradition in 2026.

Sustainable non-timber forest products

We have had our first vanilla harvest in 2024, and are expanding its presence in homes throughout the upper Mamoni River valley. This year (2025) we also launched a beekeeping initiative, MIEL EN MADROÑO, in collaboration with the Mamoní Valley Preserve, the Rural Youth Network of Chepo, and the relevant authorities (MIDA and IDIAP). We continue looking for sustainable non-timber forest products to develop in the valley.

Environmental education

Aprendiendo del Bosque with neighbors in San José de Madroño (Morley, 2024)

Aprendiendo del bosque

We work together with teachers and community leaders to reinforce environmental educational opportunities in Madroño through quarterly visits to the three schools and movie nights in the three communities of the upper Mamoni River valley. We also coordinate visits from scientific groups and volunteers to the local communities and schools during the school year and summer vacations. We are planning to collaborate with the more distant schools within the same Mamoni River basin as well.

Drone imagery over Finca Ficus (Ausinheiler, 2022)

Permaculture and seed exchange

The co-founders have demonstration permaculture farms in Madroño and Mamoní. These are independently-funded testing and innovation spaces where our communities can address agricultural issues and develop more sustainable construction practices. We also facilitate seed exchanges among neighbors and at events.

Image of the cover of the book HISTORIAS DEL ALTO RÍO MAMONÍ (2024)

Libro: Historias del alto río Mamoní

We published the book Historia de Alto Río Mamoní: Recordatorios del trabajo comunitario en Madroño y Mamoní en Panamá Este (2024), which recounts the stories of the first inhabitants of the upper Mamoni River valley, offers stunning images of its biodiversity, explains the crucial ecological role it plays at a global level, and describes the sustainable development project carried out in the region between 2019 and 2021. Half the books are being sold for $15 and half are by donation, to pay for design, printing and shipping.

Enabling infrastructure

Capacity-building solar and WiFi workshop in Mamoní Arriba, part of a EUROCLIMA+ and Geoversity Foundation funded project (McCullah, 2021)

Connecting Madroño and Mamoní

In early 2021, we financed Wi-Fi and solar connectivity in San José to facilitate virtual learning at the primary school during the pandemic. Later, we facilitated the installation of solar energy and Wi-Fi—and subsequently Starlink—in partnership with Geoversity Foundation. We currently support the communities with problem-solving, repairs, and maintenance, and we invest in local capacity to manage their communication systems more independently in the future.

Inauguration of the La Zahina Community House ( Vigil, 2022)

Local governance

We support effective information sharing / decision-making / coordination in and across the five communities of the Mamoní River valley through a combination of governance activities, including designing and co-facilitating community meetings, advising community leaders, keeping records, and supporting the legalization of governing bodies where appropriate. It is our belief that better organized communities have better access to information and economic opportunity, and that they stand to do better climate change mitigation and adaptation work.

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