Country and locations: Perú, Cusco and Puno

Project title: “From Machupicchu to Lake Titicaca”

Proponent/requesting agency: Consejo Nacional del Ambiente –  CONA

Area of GIAHS: 30,798 ha

Agricultural biodiversity:
Primary centre of origin of potatoes, quinoa, kañiwa, chilis, the chinchona tree, the coca shrub, oca, olluco, mashwa, amaranth, leguminous plants, such as beans and lupins, and roots, such as arracacha, yacón, mace and chagos;

Extraordinarily polymorphic groups of the soft corn have been differentiated;

Domestication of llamas, alpacas and guinea pigs.

Associated biodiversity:
Vicuña; Endemic grassland and wetland birds (including many North American migrants); Wild medicinal and food plants; Wild crop relatives.

Indicator species:

Ecosystem functions:

• Climate regulation through water management (waru waru, qochas); 
•  Pest and disease control thanks to hedges;
• Land degradation control through terracing;
• Efficient water-use through Inca and pre-Inca irrigation systems.

Ethnicity: Aymara (Puno), Quechua (Cusco)

Socio-economic and cultural characteristics:
The majority of the community members in the four selected sites live below the poverty line. Agricultural production is almost entirely for self-consumption and deploys large crop diversity as a risk-mitigating strategy. Some products are marketed such as artisan products and wool of llamas

The two indigenous populations live in remote areas with little public services and remain socio-economically marginalized.

Studies on loss of agricultural biodiversity have revealed that the rate of loss that has started to take place in recent decades is largely due to out-migration of males and the resulting overburdening of women.

Threats –main factors affecting the conservation of agricultural biodiversity:

• Water contamination;
• Replacement of native varieties;
• Migration and cultural erosion (opportunity costs of labour); 
•  Problems with storage and distribution of seeds of native varieties;
• Insecure land tenure and fragmentation of the collective property systems, which have been closely associated with the collective management of agricultural biodiversity; 
•  Erosion of gender specific roles and knowledge regarding biodiversity management resulting from a shift in responsibilities because of male out-migration (opportunity cost of labour).

Main objectives and activities in the pilot system:
The transect chosen as a pilot site of the GIAHS project is located in the southern area of the Peruvian Andes and includes the environment around the sacred city of the Incas, Machu Picchu, (1900 m), follows the whole Vilcanota river watershed up to the divortium aquarium in the Raya (4,300 m), crosses the northern part of the Peruvian highplateau to reach lake Titicaca at 3,800 m.

In this transect (about 350 km long) four communities have been selected as specific sites of activities. These areas maintain most of the ancient traditional agricultural technologies, in spite of strong influences of western agriculture, which is eroding many of their old traditions.

The GIAHS project, in coordination with the Peruvian Consejo Nacional del Ambiente (CONAM) and the participation of local institutions, will help value these ingenious agricultural technologies proved for centuries in order to maintain this unique, culturally and biologically rich environment for future generations.

High quality seed production of main native crops will be an important activity to be implemented, in coordination with the peasants of the selected sites and local institutions. Communal fairs will also be held to facilitate an equity market.