The Maya Biosphere Reserve (MBR) is the largest protected natural reserve in Guatemala. Located in the upper northern part of the country, it is the largest area of tropical forest outside the Amazon. The area ranges from sea level wetlands to low mountain ranges and has several lakes, rivers, and streams. The climate ranges from wet to dry, with a little humidity but mostly semitropical with temperatures normally in the mid 20 Celsius.
Despite its beauty, the Reserve has been also highly vulnerable to climate change and threats to the land from the effects of deforestation and loss of biodiversity. To combat these threats the government of Guatemala in 1990 adopted a forest community concession approach by granting rights to the local communities for sustainable uses of the forest products for manufacturing and production. This balanced approach of community production and sustainability aims to support the efforts of forest concession communities in the Maya Biosphere Reserve and their livelihood. The work is what defines these concession communities which offers them a way of life, and in turn they are more inclined to protect it.
In essence, the people, the products, and biodiversity are all linked together which still continues to this day
With resource management from the Rainforest Alliance and National Council for Protected Areas (CONAP), the Reserve has been able to slow down the rate of deforestation by designating certain areas specifically for logging, ranching, and agriculture while protecting other areas for community and national parks. The setup of community concessions has been an innovation that has given the forest communities a chance to breathe.
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