Lake Titicaca, one of the most emblematic landscapes on the South American continent, can be found at 3,800 metres above sea level. As the largest freshwater lake on the continent, the people living in its surrounding villages have throughout centuries attached a sacred significance to its existence and it has inspired many mythical stories. Today, the lakes combined ecological but also cultural richness is recognised for its unique cultural heritage in the region, illustrating the strong and important relations between people and ecosystems.

The stories were collected in a joint effort between IUCN’s Regional Office in South America, through the BRIDGE project, and Agua Sustentable, a local NGO. The main source of contact was through work done in support of a Network of Women Leaders in Lake Titicaca, named “Women United in the Defence of Water”. First, we would therefore like to convey our appreciation to the generous contribution from these women leaders as well as those writers and anthropologists that have worked with us for the elaboration of this book. However, this book would neither have existed without the new stories supplied by young Bolivian and Peruvians through our call for a story competition which we held in August 2020. These new additions, written by Bolivian and Peruvian youth, highlights our commitment to recognise the voice of youth in the important efforts we are all making to strengthen  the conscience around the importance cultural heritage can play in the protection of the lake.

We are, thus, through this book, looking to promote the cultural dimension, so often forgotten in environmental conservation and development efforts. The book can be downloaded (in Spanish and Aimara) from this link.

Bridge Photo: UICN