‘The Forest Is Our Home’: Protected Area Connects South American Conservation Zones
Ñembi Guasu, the first region protected by the Guaraní Indigenous government in Bolivia, is a crucial stretch of the Americas’ second-largest forest
The Gran Chaco, one of the world’s largest dry forests and the second-largest forest region in the Americas after the Amazon, originally covered more than 263 million acres—and nearly 90 million acres remain intact today. Spanning Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, and Paraguay, the Gran Chaco ecoregion is home not only to diverse fauna and flora but also to approximately 9 million people, with a substantial Indigenous population, including the Guaraní, Ayoreo, Yshir, Weenhayek, and Wichí peoples.
Bolivia’s first Indigenous government, the Gobierno Autónomo Indígena Originario Campesino (GAIOC) of Charagua Iyambae, was created in 2017 in Guaraní territory in southern Bolivia, near the border with Paraguay. The GAIOC, which operates under its own laws and procedures, has committed to conserving its land and natural resources by establishing several Indigenous protected areas that embody the Guaraní people’s deep connection to the environment: the Ñembi Guasu Protected Area, the Irenda Water Management Area, the Parapetí River and the Bañados del Isoso “Yande Yari” connectivity area, and the Guajukaka Wildlife Area, the habitat of the emblematic guanaco, an animal similar to the llama. These areas are crucial for preserving the region’s natural heritage and for sustaining Guaraní communities’ cultural identity and livelihoods.
Ñembi Guasu means “great refuge” in the Guaraní language. This protected area links the Gran Chaco, the Chiquitano forest, and the Pantanal (the world’s largest tropical wetland)—and this connectivity is vital for species with expansive habitat needs, such as the jaguar and the tapir. The GAIOC administers Ñembi Guasu with technical and financial support from the local Nativa Foundation and The Pew Charitable Trusts; and the area is locally managed, with the director and many staff members being of Guaraní descent.
Alejandro Arambiza Segundo, director of the Ñembi Guasu Conservation and Ecological Importance Area, is a member of the Indigenous community of Alto Isoso, part of the Guaraní territory. His experience ranges from community leadership to working as a parabiologist, a trained nonscientist helping professional biologists with field research and conservation activities. In addition, he has served as a speaker at several international events, sharing his experience with fauna monitoring, and he has worked as a community fauna monitor at the Kaa-Iya del Gran Chaco National Park, the largest protected area in Bolivia and a vital stronghold of the Gran Chaco dry forest.
This interview with Arambiza has been edited for length and clarity.
Q: Tell us a little about your career working with the environment.
A: I’ve been working for the community and our territory for almost 30 years, since I began as a local wildlife monitoring technician with the Wildlife Conservation Society, a global nongovernmental organization that trained a group of us as parabiologists. Later, I oversaw a team of parabiologists in studying the biology and ecology of birds in the parrot family—including not only parrots but also macaws, cockatoos, and parakeets—and in assessing the state of vegetation in the Bolivian and Paraguayan Chaco. I also worked on reforestation, research, and monitoring programs for hunting wildlife in the Isoso communities in the Chaco.
Q: And now you’re the director of the Ñembi Guasu Protected Area, which covers almost 3 million acres.
A: Yes. There are seven people on our team: five park rangers, a conservation and protection officer, and me as the manager. Our whole team has local roots, whether Guaraní or Chiquitano.
Q: What does the protected area actually protect?
A: Ñembi Guasu is home to rich biodiversity, including numerous species of flora and fauna. Many of these species are endemic to the Gran Chaco region and are adapted to its conditions. And because the area is a connection point, it has a variety of ecosystems, including dry forests, savannas, rivers, and seasonal wetlands.
For us, since its creation, Ñembi Guasu has had two objectives: One is to preserve and conserve not only the trees and water but also the large mammals found within the protected area, such as the jaguar, the puma, and the anteater. Another is to protect the Ayoreo Indigenous community, which lives in voluntary isolation. The Ayoreo people travel through different areas, but Ñembi Guasu is one of the places where they’ve been seen frequently.
Ñembi Guasu is also notable and unlike other areas in the region because of the Abayoy forest.
Q: What’s the Abayoy forest?
A: It’s a low forest, often referred to as a “short forest,” a tropical variant of the surrounding dry forest. Its smaller stature is due to the nutrient-deficient soil in which it grows. The name “Abayoy” is derived from the Guaraní language and means “sacred place” or “place of protection.” The forest is characterized by its size, shape, and plants, resembling more of a bushland or scrubland than a traditional forest.
Abayoy is endemic to Bolivia, and the Ñembi Guasu region serves as its sanctuary. However, two major wildfires in Ñembi Guasu—one in 2019 and another in 2021—inflicted considerable damage on the Abayoy forest reserves and left behind long-lasting scars in our protected area.
Q: Let’s step back for a moment. How was the Ñembi Guasu protected area created?
A: The process began half a century ago, when the community saw that the territory had importance for us and our way of life. Before then, the Guaraní did not stay in one place, so they sought refuge in places where there was abundance and forest. But when they settled here, they realized that it was necessary to take care of the areas where the animals and water were. So, with the creation of the autonomous region in 2017, the new government understood the area’s ecological and cultural importance and created the region’s first—and largest—protected area.
Q: What’s the importance of this being an Indigenous protected area?
A: There are two things, from my point of view: maintaining the territory in a way that highlights our cultural practices and taking care of the forest.
Both involve applying our ancestral knowledge, making decisions, and defining the uses and guidelines for coexistence with the forest. For us, caring and conserving must be clear processes, not just intangible words. We must know how to use the land, yes—but with good timing. For example, we need to use our ancestral knowledge of when not to hunt, such as during the breeding season (mainly in the spring); how not to modify the forest soil; and how not to contaminate the water or change its direction. This ancestral knowledge is what we want this protected area to help us convey to new generations.
Q: But its value is more than simply ecological, right?
A: Yes. Ñembi Guasu represents the heritage of the Guaraní nation, a legacy we have fought to protect as a designated conservation area. Its importance lies in safeguarding both nature and the people who coexist with it.
For many, particularly those from abroad, it may seem unusual to think of a protected area as a place where communities live and depend on its resources. However, from our perspective, the forest is our home, and we’ve lived in harmony with it for generations. Our presence does not harm the environment and should not be viewed negatively. We ensure this balance between the forest and the people who live there by designating it as a protected area and by establishing regulations and guidelines through our self-governance, which aligns with our understanding of stewardship.
Ñembi Guasu is also a crucial link between countries and ecosystems. It connects Bolivia’s Gran Chaco to Paraguay and Argentina in the south and the Pantanal in the east. Nearby are Kaa-Iya del Gran Chaco National Park to the west and Otuquis National Park to the east. This means that Ñembi Guasu has the potential to become an essential ecological corridor for the region. By uniting the Pampas, the Chiquitano dry forest, and the Pantanal, Ñembi Guasu serves as a natural refuge, facilitating species movement and seed dispersal.
What’s more, Ñembi Guasu’s size and variety of habitats offer a large, secure refuge for flora and fauna during environmental crises, while also serving as a refuge for Ayoreo communities. All of this ensures the continuity of ecological processes and the resilience of ecosystems in a landscape that’s increasingly under threat.
Q: You talk about the area being “increasingly under threat,” and you mentioned the fires in 2019 and 2021. Could you elaborate on the ongoing fire threat in the region?
A: Fires are the main threat to Ñembi Guasu. They can be devastating both during and after they occur, and they can change everything we know about this region. Last year was a significant milestone for us as a protected area, as it was the first year we were able to fight the fire before it crossed our boundaries.
From June through October, we focused on protecting the area from surrounding fires. Many of the fires started in the nearby mountain range. As a team, we helped protected areas from other communities and municipalities manage their emergencies to prevent the fire from reaching our area.
Q: That’s a great achievement, especially because Bolivia declared a national emergency as a result of last year’s fires. What factors helped prevent the fire from entering the protected area?
A: In 2024, we already had a strong team with extensive training, experience, and knowledge of the area. We supported other communities, especially from the neighboring municipality of Roboré, near the Tucabaca protected area.
During this emergency, firefighters and volunteer community guardians responded, but they couldn’t offer the same level of attention that we, as park rangers, could provide. We could be on duty for 24 or 48 hours, and that’s what was needed. Our mission was to make sure, at all times, that the fire didn’t reach Ñembi Guasu. We set up firebreaks, provided continuous attention, and fought the fire at night to prevent it from spreading. As park rangers, we conducted an assessment on how to face the situation, what materials to use, how many people were needed, and what tools were necessary for firefighting and monitoring.
Q: Besides fires, are there any other threats affecting Ñembi Guasu?
A: There are several other threats, such as illegal settlements, which have occurred in different areas of the land; a lack of clear boundaries with neighboring municipalities; illegal hunting; and many private landholders’ limited interest and participation in conservation efforts. Another factor that affects the protected area’s operation and management is the lack of resource allocation by the government, given that we’re a small team responsible for a large area, with many actions happening at once.
At this moment, the GAIOC is working on these issues, with laws that assign roles and budgets, but they continue to be threats.
Q: You say your team is responsible for “many actions happening at once.” Could you elaborate?
A: As management, we try to prevent any misuse of the protected area by actively monitoring and patrolling. Our team also undertakes various projects, such as conducting censuses of human settlements, surveying bird and large mammal populations, and identifying projects to support and create new opportunities for sustainable development micro-projects for the community’s families.
Additionally, each year, we strive to be better prepared for fire season, as it continues to grow more severe. Given our small team, we have worked to strengthen our capabilities by partnering with organizations like Nativa to receive training in fire response and community monitoring. We’re also working to raise awareness of Ñembi Guasu, both locally and nationally, so that when we require assistance, people and authorities will already be familiar with this unique area in Charagua and its significance. Increased visibility will allow us to deliver a comprehensive, effective, and timely response to the threats we face, which require collaborative efforts. And more visibility will also enable us to advance research and data collection.
Q: That’s a lot of work for seven people.
A: Our greatest challenge is ensuring the protected area’s sustainability, and for that we rely on proper equipment and staffing—trained personnel who can effectively manage the territory. Since we prioritize employing local community members, it’s crucial that we provide education and training that align with our specific needs. We need a cohesive team of local staff who can monitor the refuge and carry out conservation efforts.
Q: What are your hopes for the protected area’s future?
A: We’re on the right path toward sustainable coexistence with the land. Knowledge is key, so gathering research and understanding the area and its inhabitants is critical, ideally led by our own people.
Protecting the area is my priority. Educating the community about fire risks, particularly in the dry season from May to October, is essential. Last year, we helped control two fires during this period, supporting nearby communities and working to prevent another tragedy like the devastating blazes of 2019 and 2021. I hope that fires will be better controlled over time and that people will become more aware of the issue.
A promising future for Ñembi Guasu lies in people recognizing the importance of environmental preservation and committing to it. This requires ongoing coordination among NGOs, governments, and the community.
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