‘They’re scared of us now’: how co-investment in a tropical forest saw off loggers | Panama

TThere is no road through the Darién Pass. This vast, impenetrable jungle spans the width of the land bridge between South and Central America, but there is virtually no way to get through it: hundreds have lost their lives trying to cross it on foot.

Its size and hostility have protected it from development for thousands of years, protecting hundreds of species from harpy eagles and giant anteaters to jaguars and red-crested monkeys in one of the most biodiverse places on Earth. But it also made it incredibly difficult to protect. Segundo Sugasti, director of the Darién national park, says it often seems impossible to care for 575,000 hectares (1,420,856 acres) of beaches, mangroves and rainforest with just 20 rangers. Like tropical forests around the world, this forest is steadily shrinking; There is a loss of at least 15% in two decades due to logging, mining and cattle farming.

But in the last three years, Panama has mounted a surprising challenge that could give hope to the rest of the world’s forests. In 2022, the government took a tough stance against deforestation and modernized the park ranger force, partnering with the NGO Global Conservation, and deforestation in the park began to decline. This decline accelerated when President José Raúl Mulino took office in July 2024.

Mulino purged the environment ministry of corrupt officials and instituted a general moratorium on logging to stop companies exploiting native logging permits. The park ranger force has been expanded with 30 new members and 11 forestry officers, increasing their numbers from six to more than 40. The number of patrols increased from almost zero in 2022 to 55 in 2024; It is expected to be more than 150 in 2025.

“People don’t look at us the same way anymore,” Sugasti says. “Now kids are asking when they can sign up to be a ranger!”

“It’s a miracle,” says Jeff Morgan, director of Global Conservation, which partners with the park, at a time when cash-strapped governments are cutting environmental budgets.

“I’ve been in this industry for over 10 years and have worked in 22 countries. I’ve never seen anything like this,” he says.

Global Conservation has supported the park with new trucks, boats, food and fuel, giving rangers the tools and confidence to reach areas they once avoided. “Now if we have to go by boat, truck or on foot, we will go there, no matter how far it is. As long as we feel safe and supported, we will do it,” says park ranger Esquivel Ramires.

Another important change occurred in the use of technology. Since there was little phone signal in the rainforest, the rangers spent most of their time communicating and chasing ghosts. They had already disappeared when the warning reached them that the intruders were clearing the trees. Rangers are now given access to cameras, satellites and cloud systems, starting with Elon Musk’s Starlink, and are in constant communication with each other, allowing for a faster, more coordinated response.

“Before, sending a park ranger to remote areas meant risking their lives. Now I can quickly send them to the remotest corners, knowing they are safe,” says Sugasti.

Trail cameras automatically detect logging crews’ movements, and all officers use EarthRanger, a cloud-based park management system that allows them to instantly share photos, GPS locations, and incident reports. If a fire is reported within the park, they can instantly locate the fire.

The platform also connects to external sources, such as Global Forest Watch’s real-time fire detection satellites. Segasti says there are no fires in the park in 2024 and 2025. While in the past one or two guards would arrive late and alone, now teams of five can be dispatched together quickly. As a result, the team’s presence becomes more visible and feared; loggers and miners are retreating.

“Illegal mining, animal poaching and logging are much less. They are afraid of us now,” says ranger Juan Sebuygera, wearing his standard green, wide-brimmed hat.

Kherson Rodríguez, who manages the Darién project for Global Conservation, says the most remarkable aspect of the technology is that it is neither expensive nor complicated. EarthRanger and Global Forest Watch’s real-time fire alerts are free: all rangers need is access to Starlink and smartphones.

Greater financial support also meant that five rusted boat engines that had not been serviced for a decade could be repaired.

“Before, [rangers] They could not do their jobs because they lacked basic needs such as oil, fuel and spare parts. This [about] Being efficient and giving them what they need when they need it,” says Rodríguez.

The results were surprising. According to Global Forest Watch, forest loss within the national park has decreased by 88% between 2022 and 2025, reaching a 20-year low. So far this year, park sign-in has dropped to almost zero, the park says.

Reclaiming the Darién national park will help protect one of the region’s largest carbon sinks, the indigenous groups and many animal species that live there. This also occurs with the collapse of tropical forests in Central America.

“Nicaragua is gone. Mexico, Guatemala – everything is going now. If you look on Google Earth, we’ve come to these little green zones. These are the last 10% of what was there 100 years ago. So unless we do this really soon…” Morgan says, before closing, choosing not to elaborate on the consequences of losing the largest untouched rainforest north of the Amazon.

Tropical forest loss to double by 2024 reached the highest level in the last twenty years.

Morgan says bringing park rangers, who still work with pens and notepads, into the age of cameras, tablets and cloud computing is a pragmatic way to turn the tide at a time when climate diplomacy at summits like Polis has failed.

He says the turnaround in Panama also shows how co-investment – ​​partnering with governments that also invest in conservation – makes rangers more accountable and delivers better results. And it’s faster too.

“It takes three years to get a USAID or Defra grant. You do a ton of paperwork and by the time it’s ready the government has changed, the president is now screwed, the park managers are screwed. In that time everything can be ruined,” says Morgan.

Morgan says there should be pressure for direct co-investment with governments rather than waiting for climate finance. “It’s just one park. Imagine the difference we could make with just $200,000 a year times 1,000 parks,” he says.