Comunidad y Biodiversidad (COBI) was established as a nonprofit organization on March 15, 1999, by a group of five people, in response to the growing need for a group devoted to deal with and promote efforts aimed at natural resources management and coastal marine conservation in the midriff islands region of the Gulf of California.

More than a decade previous to the legal incorporation of the organization, its founders participated in several research projects in different areas of importance for knowledge and species conservation and their habitat in the Gulf of California. Scientific and technical work during all these years set the basis for knowledge, practical experience and local contacts to design and determine natural resources management programs for conservation and community's well-being.

After six years of functioning, COBI has an office in Guaymas and a national vision of its activities. With its work, COBI has rapidly become one of the most important and reliable nonprofit organizations in Mexico, focusing its work in community conservation of sustainable small-scale fisheries, marine protected areas, and economic incentives for conservation. It has also earned recognition from various significant foundations and private organizations both in Mexico and the United States.