Home - Northeast Mexico Agave Restoration Initiative

About Us

The Northeast Mexico Agave Restoration Network is leading the charge to protect and restore native agave landscapes in a critical bat migratory corridor of northeast Mexico — simultaneously preventing bat extinctions and supporting rural livelihoods.

The Network, formed in 2019, catalyzes collective action with over 50 diverse, multi-sectoral partners including environmental and education non-profits, ejido communities, private ranchers, federal and state agencies, companies, and universities. We build local capacity for sustainable land management practices and sustainable rural economies through collaborative project development and implementation, technical training, and peer-to-peer learning opportunities. We deliver effective, locally-relevant solutions and create long-term, scalable value for rural communities and bats.

Our integrative, multi-stakeholder network allows us to co-develop ambitious conservation, restoration, and sustainable development goals that would not be achievable through isolated projects; facilitate partnerships to deliver conservation success; and more effectively mobilize funding and resources in ways that most effectively address our conservation and sustainable development goals.

Mission

Our Network’s mission is to recover thriving populations of an endangered pollinator of keystone desert plants and promote lasting economic opportunities for more than 1,500 individuals in 39 of the poorest rural communities in northeast Mexico.

Vision

We envision an ecologically and economically thriving, climate-resilient region of northeast Mexico with prosperous rural communities, healthy landscapes, and flourishing biodiversity.

Our Impact To Date

107,500

Native Agaves planted
5,495

Hectares protected or restored
13

Community nurseries built or supported
255

Jobs created
10

Ejidal businesses supported, including 6 women-owned businesses
183

People trained in regenerative agriculture and restoration

By 2030, we will

400,000

Native Agaves planted
78,000

Hectares protected or restored
39

Communities supported

Our work contributes to 15 of the 17 United Nation Sustainable Development Goals.

Restoring Landscapes for Bats and People

The endangered Mexican long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris nivalis) is a migratory nectar-feeding bat that serves as primary pollinator for agave plants. Agaves are keystone species that support ecosystem health; contribute to healthy soils and water sources; provide food and shelter for numerous wildlife specie; and support human livelihoods in desert and mountain ecosystems of Mexico and the southwestern United States.

Degradation and loss of critical agave foraging habitat has led to the rapid decline of threatened nectar-feeding bats, while also threatening the livelihoods of rural ejidatarios and producers in Mexico who use agaves and rely on healthy lands for productive agriculture and ranching.

Rapid action is needed to restore healthy agave populations and healthy soils to prevent species extinction and irreversible harm to community livelihoods.

Where We Work

Endangered Mexican long-nosed bat mothers make a long-distance migration between Mexico and the United States every year, covering over 700 miles. Northeast Mexico is a critical area for the conservation of the Mexican long-nosed bat, with three maternity roosts located in this region. Agaves are their only nectar source in this region, making the restoration of healthy agave populations critical to the species’ survival. This region is also home to some of Mexico’s poorest and most marginalized rural communities who rely on the land for their livelihoods.

Our Network partners work across Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, and Zacatecas to implement nature-based solutions that benefit bats and people. We prioritize work in areas within 50 km of known Mexican long-nosed bat roosts and along the bats’ migratory corridor that have conditions of social, economic, and environmental vulnerability, but have significant opportunity for improvement of land management and sustainable production methods.

Our Priorities

We implement nature-based solutions at the intersection of wildlife conservation, regenerative agriculture and ranching, land restoration, and rural economic development. We catalyze community and institutional empowerment for conservation and restoration across the region.

Nature and Community-based Conservation & Land Restoration

By restoring agave habitats, we safeguard endangered bats that rely on agave nectar for food and support cultural and economic use of agaves by people.
We employ participatory processes for the development of community-based sustainable land management plans that combat desertification, restore degraded lands and soils, and enhance water-use efficiency.
We establish and support community nurseries, allowing us to scale up agave production while providing access to nutritious food and products for sale in local and regional markets.

Sustainable Rural Development

We’re increasing the resilience of rural communities and their capacity to address climate change, environmental degradation, inaccessibility to financial services and markets, and other challenges that stifle the potential of rural economies.
We support local community enterprises, including women-led cooperatives, that enhance livelihoods and healthy ecosystems.

Photo: Especies, Sociedad y Hábitat, A.C.

Enhanced Local Capacity

We strengthen local capacity through vocational training, knowledge-sharing workshops, and peer-to-peer learning opportunities.
We ensure equal access to training opportunities and empower women to strengthen their businesses.
By integrating education and skills development into all aspects of our restoration strategies, we’re creating communities of shared learning.

Robust Partnerships

We have built strong regional partnerships to catalyze collective action at the scales needed for success.
We co-design program goals and actions with Network partners.

Our Principles

Working at the scales necessary to achieve success. To address the urgent needs of migratory endangered species and fragile ecosystems in the coming years, conservation actions must implement landscape-level changes, benefiting entire ecosystems rather than focusing only on individual species. Conservation of long-distance, migratory species requires large landscape-scale conservation effort to achieve success, as well as long-term, committed action.

Striving for environmental sustainability. Our work focuses on achieving conservation of biodiversity and the survival of future generations of people through the maintenance and support of ecological and social processes. This is done through actions based on the best available scientific and technical knowledge as well as local and traditional ecological knowledge.

Committing to thriving, resilient communities of both bats and people. The work of the Network builds resiliency for both bat populations and rural communities and landowners. We are committed to pursuing actions that support forward-thinking resiliency.

Integrated social-ecological approach. We firmly believe that there is no conservation without people. Conservation programs must be co-developed and implemented with the communities living in the environment where the work is taking place. We can—and must—create solutions that allow human communities and nature to thrive together. The cornerstone of the Network is community collaboration and co-development of conservation actions that simultaneously support bat conservation goals and community livelihoods. By integrating bat conservation goals with local community needs, we also help ensure the durability of the work and the social-ecological outcomes.

Equitable participation and benefit and social justice. We are guided by the tenet that we should deeply respect – through action – issues of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion in the lands where we work. Members of the Network should have access to information and have the opportunity to participate in conscious and consensual decision-making. We seek to move towards equity, equality, and dignity among the individuals who participate in the network and ensure that the people who benefit from the network’s actions have access to opportunities, resources, and rights. We are working to strengthen the participatory practices of the network, with a particular eye towards inclusivity and equity with respect to network engagement, communication mechanisms, and governance.

Building success and strength through diverse participation. The diverse members of the Network come from many different backgrounds and lived experiences. This diversity brings strength to the Network, and we commit to listening to the diverse voices and perspectives that are brought to the table.