Patagonia brings together international experts in conservation and ecological restoration

With the participation of professionals from Chile, Argentina, and Peru, along with park rangers from Torres del Paine National Park and the Explora Conservation Reserve, the international course "Conservation and Restoration in Protected Areas" recently concluded.

This initiative, unique of its kind in South America, allowed for the integration of theoretical and practical knowledge on the management of forest ecosystems and wildlife in one of the most emblematic territories of Patagonia.

The program was sponsored by the Faculty of Forest Sciences and Nature Conservation of the University of Chile, the Forestry Institute (Infor), the University of Magallanes (Umag), and the National Forestry Corporation (Conaf), in addition to technical support from the Chilean Ecological Restoration Network, Rewilding Chile, and Panthera.

Under the guidance of professors Juan Ovalle and Jan Bannister Hepp, along with the course coordinator and also professor, Patricio Salinas Dillems, the students toured various settings within the park and its surroundings.

The sessions included the analysis of forests in good conservation status and visits to areas affected by wildfires, where knowledge was deepened on ecological restoration processes, specifically through reforestation with lenga (Nothofagus pumilio). The program also innovatively addressed landscape management, tourism management, and wildlife monitoring in the steppe.

For the execution and logistical success of this seminar, the support provided by Explora, Chile Nativo, Hipsur, Hotel Lago Grey, Kau Café and Lodge, and the Embassy of the Czech Republic was essential.

Following the excellent results of this call, the organization has already confirmed the holding of a course in Huinay for September 2026, while the second version of the course in Torres del Paine has been scheduled for April 2027.