Orchidaceae: Using a Globalized Commodity to Promote Conservation and Sustainable Economic Development in Southern Ecuador

Resumen

The Orchidaceae family is one of the most diverse plant families on earth, accounting for 10% of total plant biodiversity. However, many species of orchids are threatened with extinction from habitat loss or overcollection, especially in the tropics where small endemic populations exist. This article focuses on Podocarpus National Park (PNP) in southeastern Ecuador, home to over 3,000 of the world's approximately 25,000 species of orchids. Ecuador's incredible array of orchids remains largely separated from the wealth generated by commercial orchid sales, while concomitantly being threatened by land-clearing practices and illicit collection. This situation is the result of (a) insufficient resources to address conservation needs, (b) weak funding and inter-agency coordination at the government level, (c) poor historic coordination among the large regional network of conservation groups, and (d) a disconnect between conservation agendas and local communities. This article assesses the potential for linking the international orchid market and global interest in orchid conservation with development projects in adjacent communities to PNP. Developing the market capacity of orchids as an international commodity in this region would help to achieve two common goals emphasized in national and international policy discussions: increasing the standard of living among the poor and conserving natural resources.