DiCaprio-backed group helped buy over 52,000 acres in Chile; protection in talks
A conservation group supported by Leonardo DiCaprio has acquired 52,000 acres on Chile's Guafo Island to prevent industrial development. Efforts are now underway to secure permanent legal protection for the land as a national park.
Why it matters
Large-scale private land acquisition for conservation represents a growing trend in environmental protection, though it requires complex legal and community integration.
More than a year after a conservation group linked to Leonardo DiCaprio helped acquire over 52,000 acres on Chile’s Guafo Island, efforts are continuing to secure its future as a protected area. The purchase, completed in 2025 for US$7.5 million, was intended to prevent destructive development and preserve the island’s wildlife and forests. According to Chilean newspaper La Tercera, which reported on the organisation’s financial records and negotiations on October 17, 2026, Re:wild (Re), the conservation organisation linked to DiCaprio, and its local partners are working with Chilean authorities on a legal framework for protection. The process also involves Indigenous communities with longstanding cultural and traditional ties to the island.How the island was acquired for conservationGuafo Island lies off the coast of Chiloé, in southern Chile, near the municipality of Quellón. It covers an ecologically important landscape that has attracted interest from coal mining and timber harvesting industries.
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