The Relationship Between Water, Society, and the Sustainable Development Goals: A Case Study of Forest Conservation in a Rural Community

The conservation of ecosystems is essential for ensuring natural resources like water, a key ecosystem service sustaining human activities. However, its effect on human well-being remains uncertain. This study explores links between water provision, local activities, and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) targets in El Carmen de Jadán, a rural Andean community in Azuay, Ecuador. Located downstream of the Aguarongo Protected Forest (APF), residents rely on headwaters for agriculture, livestock, and domestic use. Conservation efforts since the 1990s have played a key role in maintaining this supply. We developed a storyline to create a conceptual framework connecting water provision, respondents’ activities, and personal and community goals and challenges. We surveyed 55 water users and evaluated relationships through two indices: Level of Support for Contribution (LSC) and Importance of Contribution (IC). A network analysis of highest values revealed that human consumption activities (44–52 responses) were most linked to water, followed by livestock (29–37), agriculture (24–29), and ancestral health practices (28). Human consumption was associated with SDG targets 2.4, 6.1, 6.4, 6.6, 12.8, 13.3, 15.2, and 15.4 (346–416 links), while other activities were linked to all 11 targets analyzed, including 1.1, 1.2, and 2.1 (220–427). The results show strong connections between conservation, livelihoods, and sustainability goals.