Afro-Colombians fight the effects of gold mining through biodiversity projects in a violent region

Associated Press

SAN ISIDRO, Colombia (AP) — Many initiatives by ethnic communities in impoverished Choco in northwestern Colombia aim to fight back against the environmental devastation inflicted upon the Atrato, a river that weaves around some 750 kilometers (470 miles) through northern Colombian jungles. With no visible state presence and armed groups encroaching on the land for gold, these projects contain some of the last vestiges of protected biodiversity in the region, supporting native plant life and fish populations no longer sustained by barren land and polluted waters. Colombia is set to host the United Nations Biodiversity Conference, known as COP16, this month, where their efforts to protect nature will be in focus.