Chocó, on the edge of the abyss

The Chocó forest, is one of the most biodiverse places on earth together with the Amazon basin, and also one of the most threatened areas. In this biodiversity hotspot inhabits thousand of species, lot of them new to science and undescribed. In this area inhabit 9,000 species of vascular plants, more than 270 species of mammals, 800 species of birds, 210 species of reptiles, 130 species of amphibians,and thousand of species of invertebrates. But regrettably we are destroying it.
Palm oil plantations, mining, wood extraction, and other problems are among the causes of this mess, and we must STOP this disaster. All people can do something in their lives in order to STOP this, like STOP of buy products that contain palm oil. Yes, there are a lot of products that contain it, but we can do the effort and don’t buy it. Other thing that you can do is collaborate as a donor with some of the NGO that are working to save the Chocó, expanding the reserves, buying terrain and working with the local people for example. Here I let you some of them:

Save the Chocó
Fundación Jocotoco

Here I let you some of the photos that I could take during my time in Ecuador, like El Jardín de los Sueños, or Mashpi Lodge for example. The Ecotourism is helping to preserve some of these places, working with the communities, giving to the people more sustainable ways of living, without destroying the forest. I admire how well are they doing it, and I strongly recommend to visit those places, helping them to continue the work of conservation.

All photos are property of Javier Aznar, and can not be used without prior consent. For any use, consult through the form or through the email info@javieraznarphotography.com
They can be acquired under the license of National Geographic Creative.

International League of Conservation Photographers