Primera década de investigación y educación en la Reserva de la Biosfera Cabo de Hornos: El enfoque biocultural del Parque Etnobotánico Omora

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Abstract

La Reserva de la Biosfera Cabo de Hornos (RBCH) conserva los bosques más australes del planeta y una de las últimas áreas prístinas que es posible encontrar en el siglo XXI: la ecorregión subantártica de Magallanes en el extremo sur de Sudamérica. A diferencia de la mayoría de las áreas protegidas de Chile, tales como la Reserva de la Biosfera Torres del Paine, que poseen una historia de impactos antropogénicos, la RBCH ha permanecido protegida por su condición remota y de reserva naval. Hoy, a diez años de la creación de la RBCH, esta condición remota está cambiando y se requiere reforzar un programa de investigación y educación orientado proactivamente hacia la conservación, que contrasta con medidas reactivas de restauración necesarias en otras áreas protegidas. La investigación y educación desarrolladas en el centro científico de la RBCH, el Parque Etnobotánico Omora, ha tenido un enfoque biocultural que integra tres dimensiones: biofísicas, culturales e institucionales. Durante la primera década (2005-2015) de la RBCH, la investigación interdisciplinaria se ha organizado en tres áreas: (1) biodiversidad subantártica poco percibida, (2) investigación ecológica y socio-ecológica a largo plazo, e (3) integración de ética ambiental, educación y conservación biocultural. Con este enfoque biocultural se ha descubierto un "hotspot" mundial de biodiversidad mundial de briófitas, se ha establecido el primer Sitio de Estudios Socio-Ecológicos a Largo Plazo en la latitud 55° S, y creado la Filosofía Ambiental de Campo, una metodología de educación que podría constituir un modelo para otros currículos pedagógicos y áreas protegidas. Las dimensiones biofísicas son bien comprendidas, pero para entender cabalmente las dimensiones culturales e institucionales del enfoque biocultural es indispensable conocer el contexto histórico que ha conducido a establecer el futuro Centro Subantártico Cabo de Hornos el año 2017.

Translated abstract

The Cape Horn Biosphere Reserve (CHBR) conserves the world's southernmost forests and one of the last pristine areas that can still be found in the 21st century: the sub-Antarctic Magellanic ecoregion. Unlike most protected areas in Chile, such as Torres del Paine Biosphere Reserve, which have a history of anthropogenic impacts, the CHBR has remained protected by its remote location and presence of a naval reserve. Today, ten years after its creation, this remote condition is changing. This requires strengthening the research and education programs for implementing a proactive conservation-oriented approach, which contrasts with the reactive measures of restoration that are necessary in other protected areas today. Research and education developed at the Omora Ethnobotanical Park, the CHBR's scientific center, has had a biocultural approach that integrates three dimensions: biophysical, cultural, and institutional. During the first decade (2005-2015) of the CHBR, interdisciplinary research has been organized into three areas: (1) under-perceived sub-Antarctic biodiversity, (2) ecological and socio-ecological long-term research, and (3) integration of environmental sciences and ethics into biocultural education and conservation. This biocultural approach has been instrumental for discovering a global "hotspot" of global biodiversity of bryophytes, establishing the first site of Long-Term Socio-Ecological Research at latitude 55° S, and created the field environmental philosophy methodological approach, a pedagogical model that could be adapted in other educational curricula and protected areas. The biophysical dimensions are generally well understood, but to fully understand the cultural and institutional dimensions of this biocultural approach it is essential to better know the historical context that has motivated the creation of the future Cape Horn Sub-Antarctic Center in 2017.

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Wilderness and biodiversity conservation.

R. A. Mittermeier, C Mittermeier, T. Brooks … (2003)

Human pressure threatens many species and ecosystems, so conservation efforts necessarily prioritize saving them. However, conservation should clearly be proactive wherever possible. In this article, we assess the biodiversity conservation value, and specifically the irreplaceability in terms of species endemism, of those of the planet's ecosystems that remain intact. We find that 24 wilderness areas, all > or = 1 million hectares, are > or = 70% intact and have human densities of less than or equal to five people per km2. This wilderness covers 44% of all land but is inhabited by only 3% of people. Given this sparse population, wilderness conservation is cost-effective, especially if ecosystem service value is incorporated. Soberingly, however, most wilderness is not speciose: only 18% of plants and 10% of terrestrial vertebrates are endemic to individual wildernesses, the majority restricted to Amazonia, Congo, New Guinea, the Miombo-Mopane woodlands, and the North American deserts. Global conservation strategy must target these five wildernesses while continuing to prioritize threatened biodiversity hotspots.