Patagonian ice fields as a thermometer of Climate Change; Rewilding Chile as a model of world conservation; and the Jurassic Park at the end of the world as a key to world paleontology, were part of the topics that correspondents from American and European media were covering for almost a week in the Aysén region, with the help of world-class national experts.
The most recent trip organized by Imagen de Chile to the XI region was a real expedition to make it known to international media such as National Geographic, The Guardian, Geographical Magazine, Agence France-Presse and Agenica EFE, Agence France-Presse and Agenica EFEdifferent areas in which Chile is creating the future.
Among the major highlights of the visit, we entered the glaciers of the Northern Ice Fields to learn about various phenomena that are being studied by experts to provide answers to the effects of Climate Change.
We accompanied the officials of the Chilean Glaciology and Snow officials of the Glaciology and Snow Unit of Chile in the context of the maintenance work to the structures and instruments of the glaciological-meteorological stations to monitor Climate Change, where we conducted in-depth interviews to understand how Chile is looking for answers to one of the great issues that afflict humanity such as global warming. We delved into GLOF events, landslides and iceland slides; we learned about the needs of adaptation to the disappearance of glaciers and replacement of these natural sources of drinking water and the relevance of assessing glacial hazards and risks to the population.
From Chile's contributions to conservation and caring for the planet for future generations, we traveled to Patagonia Park where they are restoring ecosystems and monitoring native species such as the huemul, the rhea and the condor for their protection and conservation. There we met with the Rewilding Chile team to learn about everything that is being done in Patagonia in this regard, and we were able to be part of the release of Pumalín y Liquiñetwo condors that completed their rehabilitation process to return to the wild. In addition, we learned about the Huemul National Corridor, a pioneering initiative that seeks to recover the fragmented habitats of the huemul and we were able to see in situ the monitoring work of this species. We also went to the Ñandú Reproduction Center, the only one of its kind in South America, which was inaugurated in 2015 to prevent the local extinction of this species, when the population did not exceed 20 individuals.
As part of Chile's scientific contributions, a paleontological tour was conducted in an area of enormous scientific value in the area. We traveled through two sections known by the people of Aysén as the Fossil Route and the "Jurassic Park at the end of the world" where, in 2015, was discovered the Chilesaurus diegosuarezi, a dinosaur about 148 million years oldThe British newspaper The Guardian called it "the paleontological discovery of the century" when it was on the cover of Nature magazine, due to the fact that this species triggered a controversial reorganization of the family tree of these animals.
Geologist Manuel Suarez, who found the dinosaur with his son Diego, accompanied us on the tour and was able to answer questions from the correspondents present.
To see part of the bones found of the Chilesaurus, as well as many other interesting contents connected to the territory of Aysén, we went to the Regional Museum of Coyhaique, nominated these days for the Leading Culture Destinations (LCD) Berlin Awards 2021, recognized as the "Oscars of museums" to be delivered in March this year. The nomination corresponds to the category: "NEW CULTURE DESTINATIONS OF THE YEAR 2021". The LCD Berlin Awards "highlight the world's most exceptional emerging cultural destinations that celebrate the vitality of culture by connecting with the arts and tourism; inspiring a dynamic exchange and a global network of culture and travel. Another must-see of the eleventh region of Chile, a natural Chilean laboratory from where the future is being created for the world.