Agave agroforestry and jaguar coexistence in Sonora

Project Summary

La Tierra del Jaguar seeks to reverse the effects of land degradation and climate change while improving ecosystem health, quality of life, and financial stability of communities in the Sahuaripa watershed. By working alongside landowners, we will restore land using low-tech, process-based restoration techniques and agave polycultures that create resilient communities and benefit wildlife. 

The Problem

Nestled in the foothills of the Sierra Madre Occidental, the Río Sahuaripa is the lifeblood of rural agrarian communities that lie within this watershed. The river and the surrounding mountains are home to many threatened and endangered species including the jaguar (Panthera onca), ocelot (Leopardus pardalis), Neotropical river otter (Lontra longicaudis), common black hawk (Buteogallus anthracinus), bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), Yaqui catfish (Ictalurus pricei) and military macaw (Ara militaris). The river valley also lies within the migratory path of the lesser long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris yerbabuenae), a pollinator threatened by unsustainable practices in the region's growing agave industry.

Communities in Sonora rely heavily on land-based livelihoods of cattle ranching and agriculture.  Centuries of overgrazing have eroded fertile soils and altered the hydrologic landscape. Hillsides that were previously supported by diverse groups of native plants have been denuded by livestock and seeded with invasive buffelgrass. The reduction in vegetation cover limits the soil's ability to slow and infiltrate water, leading to accelerated erosion and loss of top soils. Erosion diminishes the water table, impacting community climate resilience. Reduced groundwater availability affects agriculture and potable water sources, undermining the community's ability to cope with climate-related challenges. 

The extractive nature of these agrarian livelihoods and shared ejido lands has led to a “tragedy of the commons” scenario with short sighted management of resources affecting the long-term productivity of landscapes and decreasing economic resilience. Community members with less desirable land and limited access to water are at increased risk of environmental degradation, reduced agricultural productivity, and less resilient to climate related challenges.

Employment and education opportunities are limited in the small communities that dot this watershed. The average education level in the rural towns is between 5th and 8th grade. This, coupled with an illiteracy rate of 4.46%, can limit communities' understanding of how current land stewardship impacts the future. A shortage of technology and internet access are also limiters to building community capacity and creating ecological resilience in a changing environment.

La Tierra del Jaguar

The mission of La Tierra del Jaguar is to teach regenerative skills and empower people to coexist with nature in places inhabited by jaguars. Protecting jaguars has a cascading effect on ecosystems. As apex predators, jaguars regulate prey populations, maintaining biodiversity. Their presence prevents overgrazing, promoting healthier vegetation and balanced ecosystems. Conservation efforts for jaguars thus contribute to overall ecological resilience and the well-being of various species, including the lesser long-nosed bat. 

Community is our foundation. One hundred percent of our staff live and work in Sahuaripa. We are neighbors, collaborators, and stewards of the same land. Our daily interactions strengthen trust and reinforce a shared vision of coexistence with nature. We work hand-in-hand with ranchers and communal landowners to achieve a cultural shift so that wildlife is respected rather than reviled. We believe that effective conservation cannot be achieved without involving the people and meeting their needs. We teach and implement:

Regenerative agriculture techniques to strengthen species diversity, improve water quality, and promote human-wildlife coexistence.

Landscape restoration to increase the security and connectivity of jaguar habitat that has been degraded over centuries of extractive land use.

Economic opportunities that stimulate sustainable development and the regenerative economy as alternatives to ranching and mining.

La Tierra del Jaguar is dedicated to revitalizing the Sahuaripa watershed by restoring habitat and uplifting communities. Through the construction of our 25 acre demonstration site, we showcase sustainable practices and empower locals with skills and resources. By fostering collaboration between conservation and community development, we strive to create a harmonious balance that supports ecological resilience and human well-being in the region.

Aliados de la Naturaleza Program Impact and Success

Founded in 2024, Aliados de la Naturaleza is La Tierra del Jaguar’s flagship watershed restoration program, applying low-tech, process-based restoration (LTPBR) strategies to regenerate ecosystems and strengthen community resilience across the Sahuaripa River watershed. The Aliados group currently consists of 9 women and 14 men and includes several people from the Opata nation. Project lands are located in five communities spread along the watershed. Rooted in community-based conservation, the program prioritizes long-term local engagement, ensuring that landowners understand and benefit from restoration outcomes while becoming active stewards of their landscapes.

Currently implemented across 24 properties, the program integrates landowner education, hands-on technical assistance, and restoration implementation. These efforts are paired with the development of agave-based agroforestry systems, creating a pathway toward regenerative economic opportunities that align with ecological restoration goals, increasing biodiversity, and expanding wildlife habitat.

The program’s first two years have established critical infrastructure and capacity for long-term success. Achievements include the construction of a 5,600-square-foot shade house (vivero) for native plant propagation, the cultivation of over 50,000 Agave angustifolia from seed, and the formation of a locally based team including a three-person restoration crew, three-person nursery team, and biologist/educator responsible for site monitoring and environmental education in local schools. Together with participating landowners, the program has implemented over 250 LTPBR structures including contour berms, post-assisted log structures, woody debris berms, induced meandering, and one-rock dams. Structures on each site were strategically designed to slow, spread, and sink water across a variety of degraded landscapes.

Early ecological outcomes demonstrate the effectiveness and appropriateness of these techniques within the watershed context. Monitoring and field observations show increased vegetation establishment around contour structures, improved soil organic matter, and enhanced sediment retention in previously incised arroyos. These changes indicate a shift toward improved hydrological function, with water being retained on the landscape rather than rapidly lost to runoff helping create long-term watershed health and drought resilience.

Equally significant are the program’s social impacts. By employing and training local community members, Aliados has built technical capacity and fostered a strong sense of ownership and pride in restoration work among the La Tierra del Jaguar restoration crew. This local leadership is essential to ensuring the longevity, maintenance, and scaling of restoration practices over time. Surveys conducted with program participants show a preference for ecological outcomes to guide their land management decisions, rather than economic or social influences. This suggests that participation in the program is increasing understanding that ecological outcomes support long-term economic and social benefits.

The program has also strengthened strategic partnerships that enhance its ecological and educational impact. Collaborations with CECyTES (a regional technical high school), the University of Sonora, and Instituto Tecnológico del Valle del Yaqui are expanding knowledge exchange around watershed restoration, land stewardship, and regenerative production systems. Partnerships with state organizations Comisión de Ecología y Desarrollo Sustentable del Estado de Sonora (CEDES) and Procuraduría Ambiental del Estado de Sonora (PROAES) have been formed to increase regional impact. Additionally, partnerships with Borderlands Restoration Network have deepened technical capacity, with staff participating in the 2025 Sonoran Field Course and La Tierra del Jaguar selected as a partner and host site for the 2026 course.

By combining proven LTPBR techniques, community-driven implementation, workforce development, and cross-sector partnerships, Aliados de la Naturaleza represents a scalable, financially viable model for watershed restoration. The program directly addresses biodiversity recovery, soil regeneration, and climate resilience, while creating economic and social benefits for participating communities ensuring long-term sustainability and impact.

Aliados de la Naturaleza Next Steps

Because agave requires several years to reach productive maturity and restoration outcomes take time to fully materialize, it is critical that the Aliados program maintain consistent, long-term engagement in the community. Continued support for landowner education and technical assistance ensures that restoration practices are sustained, benefits are realized, and momentum is not lost during these early, foundational stages.

Over the next year, we will renew landowner agreements and scale restoration efforts across 24 participating sites, with our crews building on existing work through the installation of an additional 250 LTPBR structures to further enhance water retention, reduce erosion, and improve soil health. At the same time, restoration and nursery teams will implement agroforestry plantings at each site, introducing approximately 2,000 agave and companion species, including mesquite, chiltepin, lavender, sage, and brittlebush on each property in collaboration with landowners. The nursery team will continue propagating locally adapted plants from seed and cuttings to support restoration and agroforestry efforts. 

Seeing examples of increased plant biomass resulting from improved water retention and soil health in their own communities makes the effectiveness of these restoration efforts undeniable. Each site shows visible improvements from previously implemented works, which motivates stakeholders to replicate and expand the structures. By hosting workshops on Aliados sites within each community, the program will train and inspire land managers across the watershed to implement LTPBR structures. Workshops will be held in all five communities, using Aliados members’ lands as demonstration sites that showcase restoration outcomes in a place-based context to a broader audience. 

Surveys conducted with Aliados members indicated that limited time and financial resources were the main barriers to expanding LTPBR works on their lands. In response, the program will organize and train restoration workgroups in each community, enabling Aliados members to scale their efforts while providing additional community members with hands-on restoration experience.

Risks associated with this project include a potential return to short-sighted land management practices by stakeholders if foundational restoration and planting phases are not implemented at a sufficient scale to demonstrate visible productivity of the land. Additionally, climate variability poses risks to plant establishment and the stability of restoration structures.

This program will directly impact 100 people through Aliados members and their families. Capacity building workshops will be made available to communities reaching an estimated 200 adults. Weekly environmental education classes in local schools and field days at the La Tierra del Jaguar demonstration site will reach an additional 400 children, young adults, and their families.

Once the foundational restoration works and reforestation plantings have matured, the program is designed to sustain itself by establishing agroforestry systems that generate revenue long after the grant period. These systems are also regenerative in that the agave pups, seeds and cuttings from each parcel can reforest more acres year after year. Value added products from agave, chiltepin, and other native crops will be sold locally, nationally, and internationally. A portion of this revenue will return to La Tierra del Jaguar to support ongoing restoration, community training, and regenerative agriculture programs. This reinvestment model ensures that ecological improvements are paired with long-term economic benefits, empowering communities to steward their landscapes without reliance on continuous grant funding.

Success is a community working together for change and implementation of regenerative practices that enhance natural habitats, as well as a deeper tolerance for all species. We will conduct interviews and survey program participants to gauge our impact and how to better serve communities. Restoration sites will be monitored for changes in soil, vegetation, and wildlife using tools such as LandPKS and iNaturalist, with data contributing to publicly accessible platforms.

Our project is inline with Bat Conservation International's Agave Restoration Initiative, the Jaguar 2030 Conservation Roadmap for the Americas, and the U.N. Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, initiatives designed to protect and revive ecosystems, counteract climate change, ramp up restoration, and stop the collapse of biodiversity. This project will generate tangible results and introduce new concepts as we carve a path toward a productive, resilient community aligned with nature. Our many thanks for your consideration.