DIRECTORY ENTRY: ACCA (La Asociacion para la Conservacion de la Cuenca Amazonica)

The Amazon Conservation Association (ACA) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that is active in Peru and Bolivia. Our directors and staff are experienced ecologists and conservationists. We work to protect biodiversity by studying ecosystems and developing innovative conservation tools to protect land in the region while supporting the livelihoods of local communities.

ACA Fact Sheet (PDF) or Annual Report (PDF) »

Mission

Our mission is to conserve the biological diversity of the Amazon.

Vision

Road construction, logging, and land clearing for agriculture are endangering the health of the Amazon rainforest. The Amazon Conservation Association aims to protect the forests by creating a network of state, community, and private lands managed for conservation and sustainable use of resources. We work by forging ties with governments, nonprofits and people who depend on the rainforests for their livelihood, with the goal of saving rare species and habitats and learning from the land. Scientific research guides our approach, which strives for concrete, measurable achievements.

We concentrate our resources in the field, where they have the largest impact on conservation. Because long-term conservation depends on active and informed participation by local stakeholders, we collaborate with people who make a living from the forest and are working to improve their management of resources.

History

Since 1999, ACA has been a pioneer in conserving Amazonian forests. Its founding program provided support for Brazil nut harvesters in Peru, as an incentive for protecting the forest. ACA also established Peru’s first conservation concession in 2001. The Los Amigos Conservation Concession comprises 360,000 acres of the lower Los Amigos watershed, as a buffer for world-famous Manu National Park. ACA’s Los Amigos Biological Station has become one of the most active research centers in the Amazon. Then in 2005, ACA created Peru’s only permanent research center focused on Andean cloud forest ecology and management.

Structure

ACA has offices in Washington, DC and La Paz, Bolivia. Our projects in Peru are implemented by our sister organization, ACCA (Asociación para la Conservación de la Cuenca Amazónica).