SBN-SNC Strategic Alliances

From the Environmental Management Directorate and the Climate Change Department, we employ various actions to enable the provision of carbon credits through Natural Climate Solutions projects. We are working on methodologies, protocols, baselines, and early investment. These projects are also monitored comprehensively (biotic, economic, and social), ensuring that, in addition to providing technical information and protecting strategic ecosystems, opportunities are generated to improve the living conditions of local communities, responding to the socio-environmental challenges defined by the IUCN Standard for Nature-Based Solutions. 

1. Wildlife Project

The Wildlife Project (PVS) is a biodiversity conservation initiative funded by Ecopetrol that began in 2014, with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) as a partner, and with the support of the Santo Domingo Foundation, the Fund for Environmental Action and Children, and local partner organizations that lead actions in the work areas.

The PVS seeks to address the conservation challenge in ECOPETROL's operating landscapes, with the goal of achieving long-term conservation of biodiversity through the implementation of conservation actions focused on meeting the habitat requirements of complementary endangered species populations and generating benefits for human communities.

Documents

 

	Learn in detail about the strategic alliance: Proyecto Vida Silvestre.
	Consult: Ficha técnica Proyecto Vida Silvestre.
	Consult: Cartillas y otros productos PVS.
	Consult: Notas Silvestres PVS.
	Consult: Programa de Monitoreo PVS.
	Consult: Noticias PVS.
	Consult: Bitácora PVS
	Consult: Bitácora PVS 2.0
	Community Testimonials: Las voces que nos inspiran.

2. FIBRAS Agreement Essence and territory

FIBRAS is a cooperation agreement between the Humboldt Institute and Ecopetrol for the planning and management—under sustainable development criteria—of biodiversity and its contributions to well-being in the territories of Huila, Orinoquia, and the Magdalena Medio, based on scientifically based information. Its objective is to strengthen the sustainable development of these areas of interest through the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.

The alliance between Ecopetrol and the Alexander von Humboldt Institute, launched in 2019, has achieved significant progress in biodiversity through 2023. Key results include the consolidation of biodiversity plans in six eco-reserves, the first catalog of cultivable microorganisms in Colombia, wildlife monitoring with 600 camera traps, and the generation of 194 species distribution biomodels. Additionally, 252 plant species with sustainable potential were recorded, and 10.5 million hectares were analyzed to optimize conservation investments. 

Thanks to these advances, a new phase of the alliance, called Fibras, was signed in 2024. This will strengthen comprehensive biodiversity monitoring through camera trapping, environmental DNA, and advanced sequencing technologies. A strategy for social appropriation of knowledge will also be implemented to improve science-based decision-making and raise awareness about biodiversity among various stakeholders. 

3. The Nature Conservancy - Bioeconomy Agreement

Ecopetrol, in partnership with The Nature Conservancy (TNC), signed this agreement at the end of 2024 with the goal of generating technical input for the consolidation of a national bioeconomy strategy. In the context of the energy transition, this initiative seeks to strengthen national and regional spaces that promote bioeconomy strategies for the country's sustainable development. 

The agreement will also support the generation of technical inputs in the bioeconomy aligned with the National Biodiversity Plan and the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (MGBKM), thus contributing to the preservation and sustainable use of natural resources in Colombia. 

4. ISA Alliance- Jaguar Connection.

Jaguar Connection is ISA's sustainability program, which it develops together with technical partners South Pole and Panthera to contribute to the conservation of biodiversity, the mitigation of the impact of climate change, the development of rural communities, and the connectivity of the jaguar's natural habitats in Latin America, which coincide with the territories where the company operates.

5. ISA REDD+ Project Magdalena Valley Middle

This is a REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) project located in the Magdalena Medio region that seeks to actively contribute to the conservation and ecological connectivity of the Barbacoa swamp, which is currently threatened by extensive livestock farming.

The project's main objective is to conserve and increase the connectivity of the forests and wetlands of the Ciénagas de Barbacoas DMI (Mississippi Inlet) by restoring riparian forests, enriching secondary forests, and converting pastures to agroforestry and silvopastoral systems on properties with conservation agreements.

Documents

 

	Learn more about the strategic alliance: ISA REDD+ Valle del Magdalena Medio.
	Consult: Technical Sheet: Proyecto ISA REDD

 

 

6. CO2 Wetlands Project in the Magdalena Medio

CO2 Wetlands is a project that seeks to conserve and restore tropical forest ecosystems nationwide and freshwater wetlands in the Magdalena Medio and Magdalena Bajo regions, as well as to formulate and implement actions to mitigate GHG emissions generated by the degradation of these ecosystems.

7. Cataruben Foundation - Carbon in the Orinoco

Orinoco Carbon is a specific agreement between the Cataruben Foundation and Ecopetrol through which they seek to select 400,000 hectares in the departments of Meta and Vichada, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) by preventing the transformation of natural ecosystems (savannahs and forests) on multiple private properties, as a strategy to encourage biodiversity conservation in the landscape of the Colombian Orinoco highlands.

8. Cormacarena and Meta Governorate

The Cormacarena Regional Autonomous Corporation, the Meta Governorate, and Ecopetrol have established a cooperation agreement to develop a Payment for Environmental Services (PES) scheme in strategic ecosystem areas in the middle and upper basins of the Guayuriba and Metica Rivers. The project seeks to provide training, follow-up, and monitoring of the conservation agreements signed with local communities to implement the Payment for Environmental Services (PES) system on various properties. This will promote the conservation of high-value ecosystems such as secondary vegetation in tropical rainforests.

9. Action Fund - Blue and green carbon of the biogeographic Chocó

Fondo Acción and Ecopetrol have established a cooperation agreement to join forces to promote community initiatives in the Chocó biogeographic region to implement a project to reduce or avoid greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the agriculture, forestry, and other land use (AFOLU) sector.

Strategic alliances with the Center for Innovation and Technology -  Colombian Instituto of Petroleum and Energy for the Transition (ICPET) 

In Colombia, we have a unique global advantage in Natural Climate Solutions (NCS) given our significant potential for ecosystem diversity and their capacity to sequester carbon. As a result, in collaboration with the Colombian Institute of Petroleum Energies for the Transition (ICPET), the TERRA project (Carbon (CO2) Capture Potential in Natural Sinks in Colombia) was born. The main objective of this project is to generate scientific knowledge associated with estimates of carbon reserves and fluxes in ecosystems and sustainable production systems, as well as to direct efforts to implement Natural Climate Solutions as a decarbonization strategy for Ecopetrol and its Business Group operations. Additionally, the goal is to develop impactful technological products for the country in the fight against climate change, based on the development of the Integrated Digital Carbon Observation System and the updating of coverage, deforestation, and carbon inventory maps in Key Ecosystems.

Learn more about the strategic alliances with the Center for Innovation and Energy for Transition - Colombian Petroleum Institute (ICPET).

10. Pontifical Javeriana University Bogotá

The Pontifical Javeriana University and Ecopetrol have established a cooperation agreement to develop standardized methods for capturing and storing greenhouse gases (GHG) in ecosystems of the Magdalena Medio, the Caribbean, and the Orinoquia region, as well as to experimentally evaluate techniques and/or technologies in Natural Climate Solutions (NCS). The research focuses on estimating the storage and capture capacity of greenhouse gases (CO2, CH4, and N2O), conducting experiments in Natural Climate Solutions, strengthening scientific and technical capacities, and integrating knowledge systems into GHG monitoring

11. Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM) and Natura Foundation

Within the framework of Ecopetrol's research into Natural Climate Solutions, a cooperation agreement was established with IDEAM and the Natura Foundation, which was signed in 2022. The aim is to update national mapping information on land cover on a biennial basis and close the gap in standardized methods for quantifying and monitoring GHGs. This objective is achieved through the use of cutting-edge technology and the analysis, interpretation, and modeling of spatial, ecological, and climatic data from strategic ecosystems in Colombia. This will enable national S&I carbon initiatives based on natural climate solutions and the diversification of the ecosystem portfolio for the development of mitigation and compensation initiatives for the country and Ecopetrol's decarbonization strategy.

12. Carbon & Forest Research Center Corporation (C&B)

Ecopetrol has established a research alliance with the Carbon & Forests Research Center Corporation to evaluate the capture, storage, and flow capacity of greenhouse gases in mangrove ecosystems in the Colombian Caribbean. This will be done through the experimental validation of natural climate solutions, with an emphasis on restoration, rehabilitation, ecological recovery, and conservation strategies.

13. Colombian Air Force and CODALTEC

 conjunction with the Colombian Air Force, a research alliance is being developed that seeks to explore aerospace sciences for the study of land cover and greenhouse gas emissions. In the first phase, the FACSAT2-Chiribiquete nanosatellite is being designed and launched into space (April 2023). It includes technology for the study of greenhouse gases under different emission contexts, both anthropogenic and natural

14. Santo Tomás University of Bucaramanga

The Research in Agroforestry Systems with Cacao project - SAF Cacao - is an initiative that began in 2021, in cooperation with the Santo Tomás University, to develop technology proposals aimed at carbon capture and storage in cacao production systems, as well as research into sustainable production strategies that promote food security conditions and the management of landscapes resilient to climate change.

15. Microsoft

In partnership with Microsoft, a platform is being developed that integrates multiple digital capabilities for the design and study of Nature-Based Solutions in the territorial context of Colombia. It uses Internet of
Things (IoT) technologies for real-time monitoring of environmental variables; cloud computing and artificial intelligence for the development of analytical models for decarbonization strategies and climate solutions.

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