Sustainable Bolivia
Sustainable Bolivia is a nonprofit organization registered in the United States and with offices Riberalta, Bolivia and initiatives in the Bolivian Amazon. In 2016, Sustainable Bolivia secured protection for and established the Aquicuana Reserve, a reserve of more than 20,000 hectares of rainforest. Inside the Reserve, Sustainable Bolivia partners with local institutions and communities and oversees projects focused on community-based ecotourism, conservation and resource management, and environmental education/research. In the city of Riberalta, the organization aims to provide Bolivian NGOs with human and financial resources by offering internship and volunteer opportunities. Volunteers and interns have access to accommodation, language classes, and local excursions.
Mission
Sustainable Bolivia's main goal is to develop cooperation and connections between diverse actors. SB wants to promote economic, social and environmental sustainability through international collaboration with local Bolivian initiatives. To accomplish this goal, SB has set several objectives:
- Conserve: working to expand and preserve the Aquicuana Reserve together with the local communities
- Reforest: SB has set up a reforestation program. Each person who stays with Sustainable Bolivia or Pisatahua is offered an endemic plant which they can plant in the Aquicuana reserve.
- Support Local Communities and Development: Sustainable Bolivia's goal is to support grassroots initiatives in the Bolivian Amazon.
History
Sustainable Bolivia was founded by Erik Taylor after receiving a joint master's degree in social science from the Universities of Freiburg (Germany), KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) and Jawaharlal Nehru (India). Originally developed as an independent organization to promote community-based ecotourism programs in Bolivia and created in 2007. It was originally based in the city of Cochabamba and moved in 2017 to Riberalta. In 2018, Sustainable Bolivia started with its volunteer program in Riberalta.
This allowed the foundation to create its own projects and supports grass-roots initiatives in the Bolivian Amazon and to be involved in the creation of the Aquicuana Reserve.