The International Workshop on Mountain Ecosystems, “A Future Vision,” took place in Cusco on 25–27 April 2001. The workshop was organized by the National Working Group for Mountains in Peru (NWGMP) and coordinated by the division of Environment and Sustainable Development of the Peruvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs within the framework of the International Mountain Agenda (Chapter 13). Its purpose was to identify the policy initiatives that Peru ought to promote for the International Year of Mountains 2002 (IYM2002) to achieve the goals of its Mountain Agenda. The workshop organization was supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), FAO, the governments of the Netherlands and Finland, the Andean Development Corporation, and many national and international organizations participating in the NWGMP, including the Executive Secretary of International Cooperation (SECTI), the National Council for Environment (CONAM), the National Institute for Natural Resources (INRENA), the National Project for Management of Watershed and Soil Conservation (PRONAMACHCS), the National Agricultural University–La Molina (UNALM), Catholic University, the National Council of Science and Technology (CONCYTEC), The Mountain Institute (TMI), the International Potato Center (CIP), the Consortium for the Sustainable Development of the Andean Ecoregion (CONDESAN), the International Conservancy, PROMPERU, CESEM-PROMPEX, CEDEP-AYLLLU, UPC, and the HimalAndes initiative.
Workshop objectives
The Cusco workshop had the following objectives:
Exchange of experience on sustainable mountain development among participants from the world's major mountain regions.
Development of strategic foundations and policy initiatives for a sustainable mountain development agenda in Peru.
Identification of multisectoral cooperative actions to promote the Mountain Agenda and celebrate IYM 2002.
Contribution to the celebration of IYM 2002 through the products and publications of the workshop.
Agenda
Presentations at conferences in the mornings and working groups in the afternoons were followed by discussions. The editorial group formulated group conclusions at the end of each day. The program covered the following topics:
Participants
The workshop was attended by over 140 participants from Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Canada, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Finland, France, Mexico, Nepal, Netherlands, Peru, Spain, Switzerland, the USA, and Venezuela.
The “Cusco Declaration” and recommendations
The main conclusions and recommendations on environmental, social, and economic aspects were prepared in a final “Cusco Declaration.” A special session was dedicated to discussing the conclusions and recommendations. The main recommendations were to:
Promote and support activities to celebrate IYM 2002 such as the following: the IYM 2002 inauguration in The United Nations General Assembly, the Fourth Symposium on Sustainable Development of Mountain Ecosystems (Merida, Venezuela, November 2001), the Third Latin American Congress on Mountain Watersheds (Cartagena, Colombia, October 2002), the Second Meeting of Mountain Habitants of the World (Quito, Ecuador, October 2002), and the Second International Workshop on Mountain Ecosystems (Huaraz-Callejon de Huaylas, Peru, June 2002).
Consider the participation of communities, local and national governments, etc, in order to create and promote awareness of and responsibility for conservation of mountain ecosystems.
Evaluate progress in the implementation of Chapter 13, Agenda 21, at regional and national levels to identify new opportunities for promoting the mountain agenda.
Publications
All participants received a document entitled Who Is Who? containing information about institutions in Peru working on mountain ecosystems. A new publication, the Concept Paper, contains a summary of conferences presented during the National Workshop on Mountain Ecosystems, Lima, Peru, 13–15 December 2000. This document contains the summary conclusions of the National Workshop on Mountain Ecosystems and presents an overview of the Peruvian mountains. Participants also received a summary of conferences, working group conclusions, and the “Cusco Declaration” containing recommendations formulated by the workshop participants. This declaration is an important contribution to the International Mountain Agenda of the National Working Group on Peruvian Mountains.
