{"id":51680,"date":"2024-06-25T10:00:27","date_gmt":"2024-06-25T08:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ferrovial.com\/blog\/?p=51680"},"modified":"2025-12-12T00:11:46","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T23:11:46","slug":"returning-water-to-andean-communities-the-traditional-way","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ferrovial.com\/blog\/en\/2024\/06\/returning-water-to-andean-communities-the-traditional-way\/","title":{"rendered":"Returning water to Andean communities\u2014the traditional way"},"content":{"rendered":"

From the moment you start your ascent up the towering mountains of the Andes, you’ll notice how much harder it is to breathe. Reaching ever-higher altitudes, it’s as though the air can no longer get into your lungs, and you’ll need to take big gulps of air to go on. If you can withstand it, and keep climbing, you’ll also begin to notice the shifting landscape<\/strong>: the flora begins to thin out, getting shorter in stature, and there’s a distinct lack of fauna.<\/p>\n

But as always, there’s an exception: the polylepis<\/em> forests show no signs of struggle. This species of tree found in the Andes can survive at dizzying heights of 5000 meters above sea level. The forests work like a sponge, trapping the rain and groundwater<\/strong>, making them an essential life-giving element for the ecosystems and communities living in the mountain range.<\/p>\n

In recent decades, deforestation has destroyed an incredibly high percentage of the polylepis<\/em> forests growing in the region’s mountains, from Colombia and Venezuela to Chile and Argentina. Peruvian conservationist Constantine Aucca has been on a mission to put the brakes on this unstoppable loss, returning the forests that guarantee access to water<\/strong> back to local communities. How? He looked back in time for solutions, to the oldest traditions of his land: those of the Incas.<\/p>\n

An Andean plan<\/h2>\n

Anyone used to the lower latitudes may struggle to navigate these high mountain lands, but Constantine Aucca is nothing but deft. His grandparents, indigenous Quechua farmers<\/strong>, instilled in him a love and respect for his land. Then some 30 years ago, as a biology student in Cuzco carrying out field research, he made a discovery: restoring the ecosystems could be the solution to protecting the forests of South America\u2014and the livelihoods of communities.<\/p>\n

The conservationist founded the Association of Andean Ecosystems (ECOAN<\/a>) over two decades ago, aiming to mobilize local communities <\/strong>in the Andes mountain ranges to plant native trees. Trees with the power to return moisture and carry water to drought-ravaged areas. ECOAN is one of the main drivers of Acci\u00f3n Andina<\/a>, an initiative seeking to replicate the work throughout the entire mountain range, from Venezuela to Argentina.<\/p>\n