Green is good, and Bhutan is planning to stay that way—forever. The carbon-neutral kingdom’s constitution already mandates 60-percent forest cover on its Himalayan foothills. Now, the Bhutan for Life initiative ensures sound management is within financial reach for every protected acre of Bhutanese forest, and its rivers—a conservation network that accounts for 51 percent of the country’s mountainous expanse.
© Emmanuel Rondeau / WWF-UK
Bhutan is acutely conscious that well-managed natural resources are key to its livelihood. The Royal Government of Bhutan is collaborating with WWF and other global partners to create constant reliable funding for its protected areas and biological corridors connecting them. Bhutan for Life follows an innovative sustainable financing mechanism (tested with groundbreaking success in the Brazilian Amazon) that ensures the legal, institutional and financial sustainability to maintain the parks and corridors in perpetuity.
A $43 million sinking donor fund together with increased investments from the Royal Government of Bhutan safeguards Bhutan’s watershed, the source of its free-flowing rivers along with clean water for one-fifth of the world’s population. Plus, a steady stream of support for Bhutan’s intact forests adds climate change resilience for rural communities and protects against illegal logging and poaching across open borders—making sure iconic wildlife like Bengal tigers and Asian elephants can roam safely across their native terrain.
