Alongside the Sidas World Foundation, the following partners are committed to the project: Fondation Alpes Sauvages, Fondation Lemarchand, Fondation Terre Solidaire, Rhône Méditerranée Corse Water Agency, Fondation Caisse d’Épargne Rhône-Alpes, Fondation PETZL, and Fondation Snowleader.

The LPO (League for the Protection of Birds) is an association dedicated to the protection of bird species and their habitats in France. While originally focused on bird conservation, its initiatives now encompass the protection of biodiversity as a whole: safeguarding species, conserving habitats, and promoting education and awareness. The association has more than 46,000 members and 5,000 active volunteers, making it the leading nature protection organization in France.

The Sidas World Foundation has chosen to support the LPO on the Alpi’Mares project, which aims to restore and create ponds with natural or artificial sealing, carry out actions to improve existing ponds, and help preserve mountain wetlands. These actions are mainly conducted at altitudes between 800 and 2,300 meters.

Ponds are crucial for mountain species, acting as reservoirs of biodiversity due to the wide range of habitats they provide. They also offer numerous other benefits: they are significant carbon sinks and vital resources for agriculture and livestock.

Though small compared to forests, ponds play a major role in carbon storage. Although they cover only 3% of the Earth’s surface, they store more than twice the amount of carbon found in all the world’s forests. Aquatic vegetation within ponds captures atmospheric CO₂ through photosynthesis, and the slow decomposition of organic matter underwater enables carbon to be trapped in sediments. In addition, ponds help regulate local humidity, contribute to microclimatic balance, and purify water naturally, while serving as critical habitats for many species. In France, wetlands account for 23% of the territory (about 13 million hectares) and contain nearly one-third of terrestrial carbon stocks.

However, wetlands are among the most endangered ecosystems worldwide, threatened by climate change, human activity, and invasive exotic species. France is no exception: between 1960 and 1990, 50% of the country’s wetlands disappeared. Many plant and animal species depend on these habitats for survival, and the decline of ponds directly threatens their existence. Moreover, when wetlands are degraded or destroyed, the carbon they store - sometimes for centuries - is released into the atmosphere.

Since 2017, over 300 successful projects have already been completed thanks to the efforts of LPO Auvergne Rhône-Alpes.

The project’s concrete objectives are as follows:

1. Create, restore, or improve at least 100 ponds in the Alpine mountain ranges of the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region.
2. Develop at least one pond in each massif: Chablais, Haut-Giffre, Aiguilles Rouges, Bornes-Aravis, Mont Blanc, Vanoise, Beaufortain, Bauges, Maurienne, Belledonne, Chartreuse, Taillefer, Écrins, Vercors, Dévoluy, Diois, and Baronnies.
3. Implement a two-year monitoring plan after restoration to ensure that all ponds remain in good functional condition.
4. Ensure the presence of at least one amphibian species and one dragonfly species in each pond.

Over the three-year duration of the project (2023–2025), the goal is to complete more than 100 pond restoration and wetland improvement operations in mountainous areas.

In 2023, 23 projects were carried out, followed by 33 in 2024.