Safeguarding overlooked ecosystems: protect, manage and restore grasslands and savannahs in Argentina, Colombia and Paraguay

Grassland and savannah ecosystems in Argentina, Colombia and Paraguay harbour common social-cultural, economic and environmental values. They are home to unique biodiversity, ensuring water and food security, providing habitat for species, supporting livelihoods, and maintaining the cultural identity of rural and indigenous peoples. They also suffer from climate and land use change. Protected areas and low-impact cattle ranching practiced by local and indigenous communities can help safeguard these biomes. Through its 3 pillars “Protect, Manage, Restore” the project supports upscaling of existing sustainable management practices, creating resilient, connected and productive landscapes featuring sustainable food production with an aim to halt biodiversity loss and support climate change mitigation and adaptation. It will raise awareness of grasslands and savannahs on the global conservation and climate agendas, focusing on community research and south-south exchange.

Project data

Countries: Argentina, Colombia, Paraguay
IKI funding: 8,060,244.00 €
Included preparation phase: 261,378.00 €
Duration: 01/2024 till 12/2028
Status: open
Implementing organisation: World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) - Germany
Political Partner: Ministry of Economy - Argentina

Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MinAmbiente) - Colombia

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development - Colombia

Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MADES) - Paraguay

Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock - Paraguay

Undersecretariat of Environment and Sustainable Development - Argentina
Implementing Partner: Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina - Argentinien

World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) - Colombia

World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) - Paraguay

International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) - Switzerland

Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) e.V.

global networks / agri benchmark

Skip to Project data

State of implementation/results

Structures and framework conditions were set up in all countries and for all outputs of the project: I) Protect, II) Manage, III) Restore, IV) Policy and Communication, and V) Scientific Evidence and Knowledge through baseline analyses and stakeholder exchanges.
In all project countries, areas have been identified for supporting the creation and effective management of new and existing protected and conserved areas (PCA) based on a due diligence analysis.
In Argentina, Fundación Vida Silvestre is supporting five provincial protected areas to improve the management effectiveness. Two areas have been selected to be proposed as new protected areas.
For Paraguay, five existing PA have been selected to support, and five new conservation units are being analysed internally to support their creation and/or national recognition.
In Colombia, three farms were selected to be supported in the registration process to become a Natural reserve of civil society-RNSC (private and voluntary conservation). Progress was made in advancing management effectiveness (baseline) for four RNSC, one National Park (PNN El Tuparro) and one Integrated Management District (DNMI Cinaruco).
The current conventional beef production systems were analysed in all countries (“business as usual” model), workshops were conducted with community members, farmers and other local stakeholders to define sustainable management models, and to update and validate the project methodology of cost-benefit analysis with producers in the territory.
Consultations with five Indigenous communities in Pantanal and Humid Chaco were carried out based on the process of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). Based on the approval, work has begun to strengthen livelihoods and good management practices. Four exchange trips were conducted as part of the “Tour Criollos 2025,” involving 50 participants from research, technical, and production sectors, to observe adaptation to natural environments and exchange knowledge. Creole cattle breeds are key both for native grassland conservation and climate change adaptation, representing a good management practice focused primarily on small producers.
Similarly, methodological approaches and experiences on restoration have been assessed and pilot areas have begun to carry out restoration activities.
In Argentina, the restoration pilot has been selected, and different restoration actions are taking place. In Paraguay, four sites have begun restoration activities in Humid Chaco and Pantanal. In Colombia, the methodological route for restoration was defined and pilot sites were selected, where initial information related to property and flora characterisation was collected.
Experts from academia, NGOs, governments, and international organisations are connected through the Global Grasslands and Savannahs Dialogue Platform (wwf.panda.org/…) and meet every few weeks to exchange ideas and strengthen collaboration. Project updates, events, and publications are also shared through the WWF-Project-LinkedIn page, which already connects a community of more than 700 followers since its launch in October 2024 (www.linkedin.com/…).
The project successfully brought together diverse stakeholders and built new alliances for Grasslands and Savannahs by communicating their vital role and leading policy dialogues at major international events, including CBD COP16 (Colombia); UNCCD COP16 (Riyadh), and UNFCCC COP30 (Brazil).
Three key policy briefs were presented and discussed there:
- Grasslands, Savannahs, and Rangelands — A Call for Integrated Action Across the Rio Conventions (wwfint.awsassets.panda.org/…)
- Pathways to Achieving the Global Biodiversity Framework Targets (iucn.org/…)
- Protecting the Overlooked Carbon Sink: A Policy Agenda for Grasslands (wwfint.awsassets.panda.org/… )
Two Colombian PhD students, one associated German PhD student and one Argentinian PhD student as well as three master students are carrying out their research in the context of the project. The PhD research topics include the spatiotemporal analysis of socio-ecological networks, the relevance of private capital for conservation, agroecological initiatives, and the integration of Indigenous and local knowledge in fire management strategies. Field visits between 2024 and 2026 were realised in all three project countries to carry out research activities. Initial results were presented at international conferences and several scientific articles are currently under development.