For the past year, CSF-Bolivia has been working on an innovative platform called CASA Verde which aims to engage different sectors of Bolivian society including conservation NGOs, private companies, and the general public, who are interested in contributing to environmental conservation. The main objective of CASA Verde is to improve conservation of ecosystems that sustain life and productive activities in Bolivia by promoting greater participation and awareness in society. CASA Verde will also contribute to the implementation of the commitments assumed by Bolivia in the National Development Plan, as well as the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Casa Verde logo.

The first step of this project was a feasibility assessment of the platform. The study concluded that the implementation of CASA Verde is feasible, given support from the private sector and society as a whole. All the actors that were consulted showed great interest, and we found that: i) several NGOs want to be part of CASA Verde´s portfolio of projects and applied with different proposals, ii) almost all of the private companies we consulted (around 30 in total) offered support to the platform, iii) people showed a positive willingness to contribute (monetarily) to the platform and, iv) sponsorship was offered by three influential organizations: the National Chamber of Industry and Commerce, the Confederation of Private Entrepreneurs of Bolivia, and the United Nations.

The main goal for 2018 is to officially launch the platform. For this stage, we have joined with a technical partner, VALORARSE, who has extensive experience in Corporate Social Responsibility in Bolivia and will help us to reach the following goals:
- Define the technical and financial structure of the platform and how it will function - including the identification and selection of appropriate fundraising mechanisms.
- Formalize commitments with the private sector via support agreements.
- Formalize the support of strategic companies to sponsor the launch and dissemination campaign of CASA Verde.

We strongly believe that CASA Verde has the potential to improve the level of involvement of Bolivian society with conservation and environmental issues. The platform is a unique and innovative project that will facilitate the construction of socio-environmental alliances.

This project is being generously supported by the Good Energies Foundation. Please, click here for more information.

By: Sophia Espinoza