The native tropical montane cloud forest habitat of the tropical white oak tree is an ecosystem now under constant threat from deforestation for agricultural pasture and climate change. The forests suffer from over-exploitation and land use changes, with vast areas being converted to grazing pasture and coffee plantations – destroying the home of Quercus insignis. Despite its wide range across several countries, populations of this species are extremely fragmented and it is becoming increasingly rare, although precise information on the remaining population and trend is unavailable.

Saving this species will have several benefits to local communities. Amongst these will be an increased awareness of the importance of tropical montane cloud forest biodiversity and a successful, community-owned timber production programme that will provide sustainable livelihoods while also ensuring the conservation of endangered tree species.

To date, 730 saplings of Quercus insignis have been planted at twelve different sites. Currently, seedlings are being propagated from five different populations across Mexico.