Osa Conservation (OC) was founded in 2003 to conserve the globally significant terrestrial and marine biological diversity of the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica by implementing ecosystem stewardship, enhancing scientific understanding, providing education and training, and creating sustainable economic opportunities.
Over the course of its first decade, OC focused on land acquisition, the development of two field stations, and the consolidation of the more than 2,500 ha in the protected areas owned and managed by OC.
In recent years, the organization has been making strategic steps to involve local communities as allies in implementing conservation action plans in the Osa, including large-scale restoration, and is building networks and partnerships.
OC is joining Initiative 20x20 as a technical partner to:
- Provide technical assistance to implement restoration projects. OC has eliminated deforestation from its land and has planted more than 300,000 native trees. They have plans to scale up restoration rapidly across the region over the coming five years.
- Identify sites where restoration projects can be developed, partnering with international partners to apply the latest tools and technologies to scale up. OC partners directly with local communities and land managers to identify restoration sites. OC is also a recognized conservation technology leader, collaborating with government and land management organizations to implement the Osa Camera Trap Network (OCTN). This region-wide effort empowers local stakeholders to monitor wildlife.
- Build capacity at both project and government level. OC has been laying the groundwork for a peninsula-wide network of forest protectors for the past several years. By empowering local communities, our Rios Saludables program has engaged local schools, managed an active citizen science-based water quality monitoring network and has recently become the model site for Costa Rica’s National River and Watershed Alliance. Additionally, through its Osa SAFER (Surveillance Alliance For Ecosystem Resilience) program, the organization piloted successful environmental education by training local guides, national park personnel, and volunteer forest rangers to use technology to monitor wildlife populations. OC has also initiated women-led community-based projects, created a popular local Junior Park Ranger group, and started a “Heroes of Osa” event to celebrate the region's top environmental heroes.
OC is eager to share knowledge and experience with conservation and restoration practices with other Initiative 20x20 members. For example, OC has pioneered the use of fast-growing, native balsa to jump-start restoration and create a closed canopy within 18 months, lowering restoration costs by eliminating the need for years of weeding post-planting. We believe other groups in tropical lowland systems could benefit from this technique.
Country
Costa Rica
Osa Conservation (OC) was founded in 2003 to conserve the globally significant terrestrial and marine biological diversity of the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica by implementing ecosystem stewardship, enhancing scientific understanding, providing education and training, and creating sustainable economic opportunities.
Over the course of its first decade, OC focused on land acquisition, the development of two field stations, and the consolidation of the more than 2,500 ha in the protected areas owned and managed by OC.
In recent years, the organization has been making strategic steps to involve local communities as allies in implementing conservation action plans in the Osa, including large-scale restoration, and is building networks and partnerships.
OC is joining Initiative 20x20 as a technical partner to:
- Provide technical assistance to implement restoration projects. OC has eliminated deforestation from its land and has planted more than 300,000 native trees. They have plans to scale up restoration rapidly across the region over the coming five years.
- Identify sites where restoration projects can be developed, partnering with international partners to apply the latest tools and technologies to scale up. OC partners directly with local communities and land managers to identify restoration sites. OC is also a recognized conservation technology leader, collaborating with government and land management organizations to implement the Osa Camera Trap Network (OCTN). This region-wide effort empowers local stakeholders to monitor wildlife.
- Build capacity at both project and government level. OC has been laying the groundwork for a peninsula-wide network of forest protectors for the past several years. By empowering local communities, our Rios Saludables program has engaged local schools, managed an active citizen science-based water quality monitoring network and has recently become the model site for Costa Rica’s National River and Watershed Alliance. Additionally, through its Osa SAFER (Surveillance Alliance For Ecosystem Resilience) program, the organization piloted successful environmental education by training local guides, national park personnel, and volunteer forest rangers to use technology to monitor wildlife populations. OC has also initiated women-led community-based projects, created a popular local Junior Park Ranger group, and started a “Heroes of Osa” event to celebrate the region's top environmental heroes.
OC is eager to share knowledge and experience with conservation and restoration practices with other Initiative 20x20 members. For example, OC has pioneered the use of fast-growing, native balsa to jump-start restoration and create a closed canopy within 18 months, lowering restoration costs by eliminating the need for years of weeding post-planting. We believe other groups in tropical lowland systems could benefit from this technique.
Country
Costa Rica
