The initiative was presented by the project Articulating Global Agendas from the Local Level at a meeting organised by the European Union. This measure aims to adapt the area to climate change.

Mexico City, 25 May 2021. During the meeting "EUROCLIMA+ Green Solutions for Latin America", which took place from 4 to 7 May, presented the measure "Riparian corridors for adaptation to climate change for agricultural producers vulnerable to flooding in Colima, Mexico" implemented by Pronatura Mexico in the framework of the project “Articulating Global Agendas from the Local”.

The municipality of Armería, in Colima, is an area that faces risks as a result of heavy rains that have intensified due to climate change.  Around 1,200 farmers are affected due to floods that damage their crops and erode agricultural lands, and as a result it is complicated to maintain productive agriculture, a challenge shared by 981 municipalities in Mexico.

To address this problem, the project "Articulating Global Agendas from the Local", which is part of the "Forests, Biodiversity and Ecosystems" sector of the EUROCLIMA+ programme, developed an Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) measure called "Riparian Corridors", which is a reforestation initiative with native trees that reduces flooding in areas bordering rivers.

Among the trees used for reforestation are guajes, guanabana, guava, guayaba, solocuaguil, among other native species, which protect against high temperatures and strong winds, control pests, encourage pollinating fauna, and resist fires and droughts. In addition, they are conducive to the recovery of degraded agricultural land, all of which favour adaptation to climate change.

Riparian Corridors a Nature-based Solution (NbS) for Colima

Riparian corridors are a NbS, known as actions aimed at protecting, managing and sustainably restoring natural or modified ecosystems, which address societal challenges in an effective and adaptive manner while simultaneously providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits.  These riparian corridors have been implemented in collaboration with the Mexican government's Secretariat of Wellbeing, through the "Sembrando Vida (Planting Life)" programme, the municipality of Armería, Colima, the inhabitants and landowners.

The corridors favour watershed connectivity, recover ecosystem services of water regulation and provision, and have benefited 3,279 people in 9 localities and 13 villages linked to agriculture in Armería, who can now keep their land protected against floods and droughts.

In addition, through this implementation, the following have been achieved:

• Progress in the incorporation of the NbS in the Armería Municipal Development Plan, which is the municipal planning instrument that will guide the works and actions of the local government of the current administration.
• A citizen council and a technical group from the Cofradía de Juárez Ejido, belonging to Armería, have been integrated and trained to generate vulnerability analyses through the study of the climatic conditions that the area could present in the future, and to incorporate EbA measures that will contribute to the prevention of damage in the face of the consequences of climate change.

The project "Articulating Global Agendas from the Local Level" promotes female participation in the area, since women are heads of the family in 25% of the households.

DATA

• The green solutions promoted by the EUROCLIMA+ Programme aim to promote the green recovery of countries and accelerate the implementation and ambition of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) of the beneficiary countries, in line with the commitments of the Paris Agreement.
• The EUROCLIMA+ Green Solutions for Latin America  meeting showcased the best practices developed and implemented by the projects and countries covered by the programme. Spaces for dialogue were opened to co-create preliminary roadmaps for scaling up, replicating and integrating the measures into public policies that contribute to climate action in the region. Learn more here.
• In this infographic you can learn more about Nature-based Solutions (NbS) to address climate change and COVID-19.
• The project "Articulating Global Agendas from the Local" is part of the "Forests, Biodiversity and Ecosystems" sector of the EUROCLIMA+ programme, implemented by EF and GIZ. Learn more here.

About EUROCLIMA+

EUROCLIMA+ is a programme funded by the European Union and co-financed by the German Federal Government through the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), as well as by the governments of France and Spain. Its objective is to reduce the impact of climate change and its effects in 18 Latin American and Caribbean countries by promoting climate change mitigation and adaptation, resilience and investment. The Programme is implemented under the synergistic work of seven agencies: the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), the French Development Agency (AFD), the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Expertise France (EF), the International and Ibero-America Foundation for Administration and Public Policy (FIIAPP), the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), and UN Environment.

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