Strengthening our Monitoring and Action Work across Colombia With New Partnership
October 18, 2023
From day one, Amazon Conservation has combined the power of technology and locally-driven action to combat deforestation across the Amazon. In 2015, we launched our Monitoring of the Andean Amazon Program (MAAP) to provide real-time actionable data using the latest in satellite technology to help stop deforestation threats that harm forests and the people that reside within them.
In recent efforts to expand our monitoring and action work across the Amazon through MAAP, we are partnering with local civil society organizations and private foundations to elevate our presence in Colombia. We recently received generous support from The Overbrook Foundation to detect and act upon these deforestation threats, in partnership with the Fundación para la Conservación y el Desarrollo Sostenible (FCDS), a prestigious NGO that will be key in sharing our actionable data with local authorities. Our goal is to lead to real, swift action against illegal deforestation.
Lead Environmental Advisor to The Overbrook Foundation Daniel Katz shared that “the Overbrook Foundation is proud to support Amazon Conservation and its MAAP initiative to prevent illegal deforestation in Colombia. MAAP’s capabilities for tracking deforestation in real-time, along with the knowledge on who to share this information with, provides palpable tools for saving biodiversity and forests.”
This work and partnerships in Colombia are vital as deforestation remains elevated and threatens protected areas. As our MAAP #187 reported in 2022, the Colombian Amazon lost 97,417 hectares of primary forest to deforestation, and fires directly impacted an additional 12,880 hectares. Combined, the forest loss was equivalent to losing the entirety of the Rocky Mountains National Park in Colorado. Deforestation decreased 2% from 2021 but remained relatively high (5th highest on record), continuing the trend of elevated forest loss since the FARC peace agreement in 2016.
By working with government entities and local NGOs, Amazon Conservation aims to combine MAAP information with government capacity to understand satellite evidence of environmental crimes to apply the law, helping build a strong foundation to strengthen the efforts and institutions Colombia needs to stop illegal deforestation more effectively.
We are grateful for The Overbrook Foundation’s generosity and support for our initiatives in the Colombian Amazon, and we look forward to what we can accomplish together through MAAP.
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