In Colombia, deforestation is one of the most relevant environmental problems, and the cultivation of illicit coca crops is often mentioned as one of its direct and indirect drivers. Over the past two decades, both dynamics have been converging, and are now found in largely the same areas. These tend to be characterized by weak governmental control, the presence of illegal armed groups, and adverse socioeconomic conditions. Alarmingly, almost half of the illicit coca cultivation has recently been found in the environmentally sensitive Special Management Zones of Colombia (such as protected areas and forest reservation zones or ethnic territories).This policy commentary highlights potential sustainable development approaches to address coca-related deforestation in Colombia. It takes into account the country's current public policy framework and practical experiences of the Colombian Government as well as the Global Partnership on Drug Policies and Development (GPDPD), a programme at Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, and its partners. These interventions are based on the Alternative Development (AD) concept that introduces viable and legal livelihood alternatives in coca-growing areas to promote rural development and discourage illicit cultivation.The article suggests aligning drug and environmental policies to implement integrated AD programmes with an environmental dimension through elements such as agroforestry, forest governance strategies or Payments for Ecosystem Services. It further calls for improved framework conditions through an updated cadastral and land titling system. In Special Management Zones, differentiated approaches are necessary to tailor interventions to the specific environmental and cultural conditions of these territories.

El Plan Nacional de Consolidación se desarrolló de manera piloto en varios municipios que hacen parte del Área de manejo especial La Macarena (AMEM) a través del Plan de Consolidación Integral La Macarena -PCIM con el fin de establecer las condiciones que hagan posible el desarrollo económico, social en institucional de esta región, la cual ha sido fuertemente afectada por la presencia de grupos armados ilegales y el narcotráfico. Esta investigación propone el análisis de la implementación de las diferentes estrategias del PCIM para el logro de su objetivo en relación con la dimensión ambiental en el municipio de Vista Hermosa en el período 2007-2010, teniendo en cuenta la importancia ambiental del AMEM, del cual hace parte el municipio analizado. Así mismo se proponen algunas estrategias que permitan el mejoramiento del Plan Nacional de Consolidación en esta zona o en otras caracterizadas también por ser ambientalmente estratégicas.