Quito, Ecuador, May 15, 2025 – Ecuador’s Ministry of Environment, Water and Ecological Transition (MAATE) has officially recognized the Cuyabeno–Yasuní Connectivity Corridor through Ministerial Agreement MAATE-2025-0021-A. This designated area, spanning approximately 2,750 km² across the provinces of Sucumbíos and Orellana, connects two of Amazon’s most important protected areas: the Cuyabeno Wildlife Production Reserve and Yasuní National Park.

The corridor’s design and management are the result of a participatory process initiated in 2024, led by the Provincial Government of Sucumbíos and the Municipal Governments of Aguarico, Francisco de Orellana, and Shushufindi, with technical support from Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). The process included ecological assessments, feasibility analyses, stakeholder workshops, and the establishment of strategic partnerships to integrate the corridor into local land-use and development planning (PDOTs).

This official designation marks a milestone in Ecuador’s efforts to strengthen a national network of connectivity corridors to safeguard biodiversity, preserve ecosystem integrity, and ensure the long-term survival of wildlife species that depend on free movement between habitats—as well as the well-being of local communities that rely on healthy ecosystems.

Ecological corridors play a critical role in maintaining genetic exchange between wildlife populations, preventing population isolation, sustaining migratory routes, and supporting ecosystem resilience. These areas also provide key environmental services and help buffer the impacts of habitat fragmentation.

The Cuyabeno–Yasuní Corridor enhances ecological connectivity between protected areas, contributing to the conservation of critical habitats, the restoration of degraded landscapes, and climate change mitigation through the preservation of primary forests and the reduction of threats such as deforestation and illegal hunting.

Beyond its ecological significance, the corridor will promote collaboration among Indigenous communities, local governments, public institutions, academia, and the private sector around a shared vision of sustainable land management. It will also support the development of sustainable livelihoods through community-based tourism, bioeconomy initiatives, and agroforestry systems—linking conservation efforts with local well-being.

With the establishment of the Cuyabeno–Yasuní Connectivity Corridor, Ecuador reaffirms its commitment to landscape-scale conservation and future-oriented environmental stewardship, aligning local, national, and international efforts to protect the Amazon—the planet’s largest and most biodiverse freshwater ecosystem.

This work is supported by the Legacy Landscapes Fund with co-financing from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the Bezos Earth Fund and Harvey and Heidi Bookman.