A Superhero Win for Bolivia’s Forests, and a Way to Carry It Forward

October 19, 2026

This week is National Estate Planning Awareness Week (NEPAW), and we have good news from the field to share. Our sister organization Conservación Amazónica-ACEAA‘s Pando Verde project in Bolivia’s Pando department in the Amazon has been named the 2026 winner in the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Lab’s category of “2026 Development Superheroes,” selected from 162 eligible projects.

Pando Verde’s work centers on adaptive management and innovation for resilient value chains in the Amazon. Put more simply, families who live in and depend on the forest can earn a good living from it, and that income gives everyone a reason to keep the forest standing.

A forest that pays its people to protect it

Pando, a department in the northern Bolivian Amazon, is still 92% forested, and its economy and culture are woven into that forest. Families gather Brazil nuts, açaí berries, royal palm, and majo palm, fruits valued for both their nutrition and their market value. The Brazil nut harvest alone involves more than 87,000 people and accounts for about half of family income in the region. Bolivia produces roughly 75% of the world’s Brazil nuts, and the harvest begins with collectors following trails that generations of their families have walked.

Pando Verde, implemented by our sister organization Conservación Amazónica-ACEAA with the support of the IDB Lab, works to make that way of life more resilient. The program helps producers manage these forest products sustainably, both ecologically and financially, using innovative tools like safety harnesses and on-site processing plants that make the production process more safe and efficient in order to strengthen the whole value chain. It reaches 31 communities and six community producer associations across 240,000 hectares, including several protected areas. In a region where deforestation is advancing, Pando stands out as an island of intact forest, and this project is part of how it stays that way.

Built with allies

None of this happened alone. Pando Verde, supported by IDB Lab under the Amazonía Forever program, has also been backed by the Amazon Bioeconomy and Forest Management Fund, and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, along with the producer associations and local authorities who have shaped it from the start. The award belongs to all of them, and to the supporters whose generosity helped make the work possible. It also strengthens our resolve to protect the Amazon for the long term.

This resolve to protect the Amazon for the long term is what makes this week a fitting moment to highlight this news. Forests and the communities who steward them need protection that lasts well beyond any single year, and planning ahead is one of the most powerful ways to provide it.

Two steps you can take today

The first is to join the national movement during National Estate Planning Awareness Week by making or updating your will this week. Through our partner FreeWill, you can do it at no cost in about 20 minutes. It is a practical gift to the people you love, and it puts your wishes in writing.

The second is to consider including Amazon Conservation in your plans. A gift in your will can sustain forest protection and community-led livelihoods for years to come, so the work you care about continues far into the future.

Giving that works for you now

If you would like to support the Amazon today, a gift helps safeguard forests in the near term, and there are tax-smart ways to give. Many of our supporters give appreciated stock, recommend grants from Donor-Advised Funds, or make a Qualified Charitable Distribution from an IRA, all of which can be more tax-efficient than giving cash. As of 2026, QCDs can be made for up to $111,000 per person. You can also make a gift directly on our donation page.

Please check with your financial or tax advisor about the best approach for your situation.

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