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On June 13th, IRI Colombia officially launched its Bogotá chapter with an interfaith gathering focused on deforestation, water security, and the role of urban people and networks in Amazon conservation. The event brought together more than 70 religious leaders, academics, and policymakers in a landmark moment for IRI’s territorial engagement strategy.

“Bogotá has both the duty and the opportunity to become an epicenter of spiritual, environmental, and political advocacy for the Amazon. What is at stake is not a distant landscape—it is our water, our peace, and our air,” said Blanca Lucía Echeverry, IRI Colombia’s national coordinator, as she outlined the initiative’s mission, strategies, achievements, and challenges.

The academic agenda opened with the panel “Faith and Science in Dialogue for the Defense and Restoration of the Amazon: Theology and Water Governance.” Speakers included Reverend Loida Sardiñas, Ph.D. in Theology and professor at the Pontifical Javeriana University, and Mauricio Madrigal, professor at Universidad de los Andes and political advocacy specialist at WWF Colombia. Both emphasized the role of spirituality, water justice, and collective action for the defense of life.

This was followed by a keynote lecture from scientist Carlos Rivera Rondón, Ph.D. in Fundamental and Applied Ecology, professor at the Javeriana University, and researcher at the Javeriana Water Institute, who highlighted the vital connection between the Amazon and Bogotá’s hydrological cycle.

The program concluded with the panel “The Amazon and Bogotá: The Challenges of an Overlooked Relationship,” featuring academics María Daniela Pulido and Liven Fernando Martínez, moderated by David Ricardo Flórez, senior policy advisor at Rainforest Foundation Norway. The discussion underlined Bogotá’s ecological dependence on the Amazon and the urgency of transforming this awareness into public policy and citizen consciousness.

During the event, IRI Colombia also launched its national communications campaign, “Without Forests, There Is No Future,” which seeks to amplify the message of Amazon rainforest protection across the country.

In parallel with Bogotá, three new chapters were inaugurated in Villagarzón, Putumayo—a strategic transition zone where extractive pressures threaten forest corridors. Along with revitalized networks in Orito and Puerto Leguízamo, these new chapters are engaging more than 300 local leaders in eco-theology workshops, climate governance dialogues, and interfaith actions for rainforests.

With these advances, IRI-Bogotá joins the network of 46 local chapters across Caquetá, Guaviare, Meta, and Putumayo—regions where tropical forests face the greatest threats. This milestone reaffirms IRI’s commitment: the defense of the Amazon begins in every territory, and Bogotá, as the nation’s spiritual, political, and cultural capital, plays a decisive role in its protection.