The Eastern Tropical Pacific Marine Corridor
The eastern tropical Pacific Ocean encompasses the sovereign waters of Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Panama. These rich waters are characterized by an extraordinary number of endemic, native, and migratory species and feature key habitats for whales, tuna, rays, sea turtles, and birds, as well as the world’s highest concentrations of sharks.
Recognizing this exceptional biodiversity, each of the four countries has created marine protected areas (MPAs) to help safeguard biological hot spots, including Cocos (Costa Rica), Coiba (Panama), the Galápagos Islands (Ecuador), and Yurupari-Malpelo and Gorgon (Colombia).
To encourage collaboration on conservation and the sustainable use of coastal and marine resources across this area, these four countries established the Eastern Tropical Pacific Marine Corridor (CMAR) in 2004 by joint declaration. The agreement provides a formal framework for the countries to work collaboratively on complex, multidimensional marine conservation challenges such as biodiversity loss and overfishing.
According to research, ecological connectivity within the region is clearly demonstrated by the large numbers of migratory species that travel between these MPAs, as well as larvae dispersal patterns. In November 2021, the presidents of Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Panama signed a joint memorandum of understanding to create a 500,000-square-kilometer (193,000-square-mile) transboundary biosphere reserve aimed at better connecting and protecting their individual MPAs. Safeguarding the pathways between the region’s linked biological hot spots would protect the many other creatures that rely on these corridors to feed, gather, reproduce, and give birth.
In 2022, with support from Pew Bertarelli Ocean Legacy, Ecuador announced the creation of Hermandad Marine Reserve, which conserves 60,000 square kilometers (23,166 square miles) of ocean between the he Galápagos Marine Reserve and the Costa Rican maritime border northwest of the Galápagos Islands.
To create a sustainable source of funding to support the new and existing marine protections, Ecuador, in collaboration with Pew Bertarelli Ocean Legacy and other partners, completed the largest debt conversion for ocean conservation to date in 2023.
Pew Bertarelli Ocean Legacy is also supporting the creation, implementation, and maintenance of transboundary marine protections in the region as part of a coalition of philanthropic, government, and nongovernmental organizations. The coalition provides financial support and technical assistance and works closely with elected leaders, communities, Indigenous groups, government officials, and scientists.