Our Dear Rainforest Protectors,
Thanks to your support we are moving full-steam ahead on our lower Amazon basin and cloud forest projects. Here are the updates!
RECLAIMING ARC’s 616-HECTARE BRAZIL NUT CONCESSION
In the past month, Darwin Solano has joined the team, as our new Executive Director. His primary role is to take the lead on restarting this conservation project, post-COVID. And Darwin has been busy!
Upon making the trip to our brazil nut concession, he not surprisingly found four illegal gold mining camps on our land. He politely – but firmly – told them we were restarting our conservation project and they would need to go elsewhere. To further encourage them to move on, he threatened to return with the environmental police. Since then, satellite imagery has confirmed the miners have moved on! Unfortunately, now illegal loggers have invaded our land. The battles continues.
With a clear need to maintain a constant presence here, Darwin worked his magic again. This time, he recruited a family from Iquitos to take on the challenge. Introducing Gerson, his wife Joyce and their baby Melany. After struggling to make a living from fishing and logging in Iquitos, they are very excited about living on the concession, protecting it and making a proper salary. Skilled in construction, Gerson’s first task will be to rebuild our shelter there.
📌Donate Now to Protect Our Brazil Nut Concession
CLOUD FOREST, WILDLIFE CORRIDOR and SUSTAINABLE LIVING PROJECTS
Thanks to you, we now have 78 acres of land in our care. And we are in the process of purchasing another 188 acres. This land is all located in the valley between the mountain ranges of the Cordillera Escalera Regional Park. The team on the ground is now working hard on our new land to reforest the areas that were previously cleared for cattle grazing.
WE NEED YOUR HELP
We are so grateful for what we’ve been able to do recently thanks to your contributions. But with all this activity, our coffers are getting bare. Your continued support is needed to help us acquire more land. We are eager to expand both our projects to have an even larger impact.
For the cloud forest project, our dream is to turn the entire valley – which covers 8,650 acres – into a conservation corridor. This would enable us to unite the fragmented habitat of the native wildlife that call the valley home. For our lower Amazon project, we would like to acquire neighbouring concessions to create a large conservation corridor. Protecting the lands in our care while providing and supporting the local communities with sustainable livelihood projects are also key components of both projects and are in need of funding.
The cost to reforest one acre of cattle pasture is CDN $1,000.
The cost for the annual salary and benefits for one forest guardian is CDN $15,000.
📌Help Us Expand Our Conservation Corridor
NEXT STEPS
I am travelling to Peru in December to meet with the teams of both projects to formalize our objectives and goals for 2023. Now that things are really coming together with these two projects, we can start to focus on launching our Headwaters project in 2023.
You are the reason all of this is happening! Your financial support, words of encouragement and appreciation have kept us focused and positive. You believed in us. And now, together, we are saving the Amazon rainforest one acre at a time.
Warmest regards,
Jana & The ARC Team.