Jocotoco is building the first scientific station in the Ecuadorian Chocó

Thanks to the German Research Foundation (DFG) and an anonymous donor, we are building our Chocó Lab, the first scientific station in the Ecuadorian Chocó. The Chocó Lab will host a large group of scientists from ~20 universities to study the recovery and resilience of the highly diverse rainforests. The researchers will study for initially four years how the key ecological processes of pollination, seed dispersal, tree recruitment, herbivory, decomposition, and predation shape forest recovery within our Canandé Reserve.

At a time when secondary forests cover larger expanses of the tropics than primary forests, the research will yield important ecological insight on how to design effective forest restoration. Apart from providing us with data for improving reserve management, the project sends a strong message of hope by showing the resilience of tropical rainforests and elucidating how they recover from logging.

The existing research consortium under the lead of the Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany, Chocó Lab allows further Ecuadorian and international researchers to study the highly threatened yet comparatively unknown Chocó ecosystem. Several plant and animal species have already been described from our Canandé Reserve; more will follow.

We are also expanding our Chocó Lodge currently to accommodate an increasing number of tourists and scientists. Chocó Lodge reopens in early 2022 when the construction has been completed.

It is important to highlight the leadership that Adela Espinosa, member of our board of directors, is giving us on a voluntary basis so that all construction work can be carried out in the Canandé reserve. Without her support and dedication, it would be very difficult for us to coordinate these important works for the Ecuadorian Chocó.

We are excited to provide research opportunities in the Chocó region. We believe that our Canandé Reserve provides a beacon of hope on how we can restore tropical rainforests effectively.