The impacts of climate change in the Peruvian Andes have caused the loss of half of the glacier surface between 1985 and 2021, according to Instituto del Bien Común - MapBiomas. These natural reservoirs are no longer able to store the amount of ice needed to release enough water during the dry season, affecting both agricultural and livestock activities, as well as wildlife. 

These climatic conditions, which cause the degradation of ecosystems and the services they provide, affect the resilience of rural communities in the Andes. In addition to being socioeconomically vulnerable, small farmers are experiencing droughts since 2022 and are facing an imminent El Niño phenomenon that will aggravate this situation. 

The Chillca Peasant Community is an ancestral pastoral community located southeast of the Ausangate glacier, in Cusco. They raise alpacas and lamas for living; therefore, they depend on water sources for ensuring quality of pastures and wetlands in their territory. Over the last decade, this complex interaction between water, soil and vegetation has been impacted by glacier loss, climate variability and socioeconomic changes. 

To face the challenges, the Chillca Community along with the Association for the Conservation and Study of Andean-Amazonian Mountains (ACEMAA) are developing a strategy that comprehensively addresses the needs of the pastoral use system. On the one hand, information is generated on the eco-hydrological dynamics (water, soil, vegetation) of the watershed headwaters and, on the other, best practices in the ecosystems are promoted to improve ecosystem services. For example, the provision of water and forage, essential for the economic activities carried out in the basin. 

To understand the relationship between water, soil, vegetation cover and ecosystem management, a "Participatory Ecohydrological Monitoring System" SMEHP- Chillca has been established with an integral approach to facilitate and promote the co-construction of knowledge and nature-based solutions. The SMEHP Chillca covers an area of 25,000 hectares of the headwaters of the Pitumarca watershed. The system consists of 14 monitoring stations, distributed in 8 micro-watersheds; at each station, automatic and manual recording instruments have been installed to measure the main variables of the ecohydrological cycle, such as precipitation, stream flow and the dynamics of surface and groundwater flow in wetlands (bogs). Biodiversity is also studied, and the forage potential of the pastures is evaluated, together with the grazing dynamics, to estimate the livestock carrying capacity that considers the sustainable use of these ecosystems.