Our Mission is to unite science, innovation, and people to protect the Amazon – the greatest wild forest on Earth.

We envision a thriving Amazon that sustains the full diversity of life.

For the past 25 years, Amazon Conservation has worked on the ground in Peru and Bolivia.

Our focus on protecting wild places, empowering local people and putting science and technology to work has been shaped by the people and land where we began.

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Where it All Began

In the 1980s, burning rainforests in Brazil drew worldwide attention to the plight of the Amazon Basin: Without a plan for development and conservation, would this vast forested “lungs of the world” disappear? And would it take with it all benefits to global air and water, human and animal diversity, scientific and medical advances?

Many international organizations rushed to develop plans for conservation and development of the lower Amazon. In the late 1990s, however, a small group of conservationists looked higher, to the source of the Amazon. Our Co-Founders Adrian Forsyth and Enrique Ortiz developed our founding program that provided support for Brazil nut harvesters in Peru as an incentive for protecting the forest, the first of many locally driven, pragmatic conservation solutions that are the hallmark of our organization.

Two decades in, we have protected over 8.15 million acres of rainforest; provided cutting-edge tools to government and forest users to protect their lands; empowered hundreds of indigenous communities to develop forest-friendly livelihoods; and hosted thousands of scientists pioneering innovative research at our three conservation hubs. We have made a difference.

The threats to a healthy Amazon are multiplying. Now is the time to intensify our efforts to stop deforestation, partner with Amazonian people to find a more sustainable path to their own vision of development, build greater climate resilience, and support good governance to conserve the ecosystems and biodiversity on which we all depend.

1999
Amazon Conservation is founded

After seeing the great need in the Amazon basin, Adrian Forsyth and Enrique Ortiz co-founded Amazon Conservation to fight to protect the headwaters of the greatest wild forest on Earth.

1999
Flagship Brazil Nuts conservation program begins

Flagship Brazil nuts conservation program begins, providing incentives for forest users to keep their forests healthy and standing.

2000
Los Amigos Conservation Concession is granted

We create the world's first conservation concession using a public-private partnership model, developing a new blueprint for forest conservation that is still used to this day.

2000
Los Amigos Biological Station is established

Strategically located, we inaugurate our first biological station on the conviction that the greatest forest on the planet deserves the best research centers in the world.

2002
First atlas of the Amazon is created

With our support, the first watershed-based atlas of the Amazon is created by staff scientists in partnership with the Smithsonian.

2004
Expanding to work on the ground in Bolivia

To study and conserve the unique Pampas del Heath ecosystem, we establish an on-the-ground permanent presence in the Bolivian Amazon.

2005
Wayqecha Cloud Forest Research Station is established

Our second research station, and Peru's first permanent field station focused on cloud forests, is built.

2008
Flagship indigenous conservation area is created

We support the Wachiperi indigenous community of Haramba Queros to develop the first conservation concession managed by an indigenous community, putting the power in the hands of those at the forefront of protecting forests.

2010
Manu Biological Station is established

Taking advantage of the impressive elevational gradient of 1,700-4,400 feet above sea level at the foothills of the Andes Mountains, we build the tropic's most premier research station.

2012
Finding the 7,000th Frog

By funding a research team at our Wayqecha station, we discovered the Wayqecha Centrolene Sabini, the 7,000th amphibian species in the world.

2013
New forest-friendly livelihood options developed

A new project laid the groundwork for how local communities could earn a living without risking their forests, including ecotourism, agroforestry, and fish farms.

2014
250,000 trees planted

Our community reforestation efforts throughout the years cross the threshold of a quarter of a million trees planted to reforest degraded or damaged land.

2015
Real-time deforestation monitoring becomes a reality through the launch of MAAP

An innovative deforestation monitoring and analysis system is created to use satellite imagery and radar technology to find, track, and expose deforestation happening in real-time.

2016
Southwest Amazon Drone Center piloted

Amazon's first drone training and monitoring center is established through a pilot program at our Los Amigos station, to provide local people with training and technology tools to detect deforestation in their forests.

2017
Los Amigos Bird Observatory connects birdwatching and conservation

Located at our Los Amigos conservation hub, our Bird Observatory provides scholarships for upcoming ornithologists doing critical avian research and gives ecotourists a way to support conservation.

2019
Supported Bolivia in creating its biggest conservation area ever

Provided technical support for the Ixiamas municipal government to create the Bajo Madidi conservation area, which protects an area 3 times the size of the Grand Canyon (3.8M acres).

2019
Supported Operation Mercury

We aid Operation Mercury–Peru’s most successful effort to stop illegal gold mining via our Monitoring of the Andes Amazon Program (MAAP). Stopping illegal deforestation using technology has since become central to all of our conservation efforts.

2020
Developed our novel fire tracking app

To detect and predict major fires across the Amazon, we developed a novel real-time fire tracker app, pinpointing the exact location of fires so that local people can prioritize prevention and containment efforts.

2022
Created the Amazonian Fruit and Climate Change Observatory

We design the Amazonian Fruit and Climate Change Observatory, a platform for local forest producers in Bolivia to improve sustainable production and adapt to the impacts of climate change.

2024
Reached 10.5 million acres of protected areas

We reached 10.5 million acres safeguarded to date through the creation of 37 conservation areas across Peru and Bolivia, ensuring protected areas and Indigenous territories are defended and well-managed for the 21st century.

Our Values

The Amazon is our home.

As local conservationists, we have a direct stake in the region, which gives us a long-term perspective on the history and needs of the forest while remaining agile, resourceful, and responsive to addressing present and future challenges and threats. We are here to stay.

We are a trusted partner and advisor.

We build close relationships with local people and governments, based on mutual trust, understanding, and a commitment to conserving the Amazon.

We are science-driven.

We apply science to gain a deeper understanding of the biodiversity and conservation needs of the Amazon, and support cutting-edge scientific research at our three conservation hubs in the Peruvian Amazon.

We invest in the next generation.

We provide education, support, and inspiration to the next generation of conservationists, to carry on the crucial work needed to save the Amazon.

We innovate to tackle conservation challenges.

We pioneer new ideas and methods to creatively solve the Amazon’s complex conservation issues, as well as pilot and deploy the latest in technology with the potential to transform the future of conservation.

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Strategy

We work from the ground up to achieve our conservation goals

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Our Approach

To save the greatest rainforest on Earth, we focus on empowering people, protecting wild places, and putting science to work

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Our Results

Our holistic approach allows us to have an incredible impact on the wildlife in the Amazon

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Mission and Vision

Our Mission is to unite science, innovation, and people to protect the Amazon – the greatest wild forest on Earth.

We envision a thriving Amazon that sustains the full diversity of life.