VISTA maps forest loss and other pressures across Indigenous territories in Bolivia’s Amazon
The story at a glance
VISTA is an interactive platform mapping deforestation and other pressures across 48 titled Indigenous territories in Bolivia’s Amazon basin. Its layers include fires, soy cultivation, clearing permits and third-party settlements.2
The reporting project estimates that more than 186,500 hectares of forest were lost in those territories from 2003 to 2023. It says about 90% of the loss was outside areas covered by clearing authorisations.12
The story in brief
What you need to know
- The project’s estimate separates forest loss into about 17,900 hectares in areas with permits and 168,670 hectares in areas without them. These are the project’s classifications; the sources reviewed do not establish that every mapped clearing outside an authorised area has been judged illegal by a court.12
- The reporting team says it cross-checked leaked records from Bolivia’s forest authority, ABT, and land agency, INRA, against satellite and geospatial datasets. It also interviewed Indigenous leaders in 30 of the 48 territories.12
- Among the 30 territories where leaders were interviewed, 28 reported land invasions; 22 of those conflicts were unresolved, according to the investigation. These interview figures do not describe all 48 territories.12
- The investigation reports that soy was cultivated in 15 of the 48 territories between 2021 and 2024. Soy is one of several pressures represented on the platform, alongside fires, forest loss, permits and settlements.12
- VISTA says its data are not official records and do not replace state records or decisions. The project’s findings have not been independently audited in the sources reviewed; ABT did not provide a response before publication.12
Conservation context
Why this matters
The platform brings mapped forest loss and other pressures together across Indigenous territories, while the investigation points to substantial clearing outside areas covered by authorisations. Its figures offer a way to examine the reported pressures, but should be read alongside VISTA’s warning about the status of its data and the lack of an independent audit.12
The developing story
What happens next
The reporting leaves open whether ABT or INRA will publish a detailed response or make underlying records available for independent review. It is also unclear how VISTA will be updated, how changes to mapped settlements and authorisations will be checked, and what action authorities may take in unresolved land-invasion cases.12
Established evidence
What we know
- VISTA covers 48 titled Indigenous territories in Bolivia’s Amazon basin.2
- The forest-loss comparison covers 2003–2023, but VISTA’s different data layers have different time windows: its methods page lists deforestation for 1986–2024, fires for 2001–2024, permits for 2002–2023 and settlements for 2009–2019.2
- ABT told the reporting team that its response to the request remained under internal review, but provided no official response before publication.1
Open questions
What we don't know
- The sources reviewed do not provide an independent audit of the estimate that about 90% of forest loss occurred outside permitted areas.12
- It is not clear whether ABT or INRA will publish a detailed response or provide underlying records for independent review.1
- The reporting does not establish what action state authorities will take in the reported unresolved land-invasion cases, or how VISTA will verify and document future changes or corrections to its mapped information.12
Source coverage
