The first approach to Campeche is through the signing of the “Declaration of Merida” on March 13th, 2006. This decision commits the South-Southeast Region (Campeche, Chiapas, Oaxaca, Quintana Roo and Yucatan) to the establishment of a State Strategy for each of the states involved. In the South-Southeast region, the participation in the Small Grants Program and the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor has been crucial to the process.

On March 24th, 2008, the “Letter of commitment for the implementation of the State Biodiversity Strategy of Campeche ” was signed by the State Government of Campeche, represented by CQI José Hernández Chávez, head of the Ministry of Ecology and by the CONABIO-Biodiversity Trust Fund represented by Mtra Ana Luisa Guzmán. The institutions that coordinated the State Study are the Autonomous University of Campeche through the Center for Ecology, Fisheries and Oceanography of the Gulf of Mexico (EPOMEX) and El Colegio de la Frontera Sur (ECOSUR) -Campeche.

Since 2007, ECOSUR and EPOMEX have carried out various activities related to the State Study. Foremost among these is the 1st Workshop of Coordination and Review of Progress held in the city of Campeche on the 6th and 7th of March.

In December of 2008, the “3rd Meeting of Environmental Authorities on the State Strategies for Biodiversity of the South-Southeast Region of Mexico”, was held in the city of Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas. Authorities in ecology from the states of Campeche, Chiapas, Yucatan, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, Oaxaca and Veracruz were present, as well as representatives of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP), Petroleos Mexicanos (PEMEX) and the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor-Mexico (MBC-M). Together, they agreed to effectively support and implement the State Biodiversity Strategy and that, insofar as possible, the aforementioned institutions will join efforts. Specifically, Campeche State undertook to publish their study in the first half of 2009 and to begin the implementation of their State Biodiversity Strategy.

Currently, CONABIO and the coordinators of each section are reveiwing the State Study. It is around 70% complete.