Garibaldi Glacier

In a move designed to guarantee that the effective protection of national parks and reserves in Chilean Patagonia improves the quality of life—and provides increased development opportunities—for the area’s residents, local officials signed an unprecedented agreement in late January, in the windswept forest of lenga, coigüe, and ñirre trees of Chile’s Magallanes National Reserve.

One of the hardest-to-spot mammals in Chile can often be found underwater, foraging among the roots of native trees in Patagonia’s rivers, lakes, and fjords.

Improving conservation of the vast and varied lands and waters of Chilean Patagonia would yield numerous benefits, both for the natural world and the people who live in and visit it.