Amazon Conservation Association

Amazon Conservation Association (ACA) is a United States 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on conserving the biodiversity and ecological functions of the Amazon Basin. Founded in 1999 by tropical ecologists Adrian Forsyth and Enrique Ortiz, ACA combines field science, protected-area development, sustainable resource management, conservation education, and land-use policy work. Its operating model is partnership-based: the organization works with governments, local communities, researchers, universities, and conservation groups, while maintaining close relationships with the Peruvian nonprofit Asociación para la Conservación de la Cuenca Amazónica (ACCA) and ACA-Bolivia. The organization’s conservation work spans a substantial ecological gradient, from Andean cloud forests to lowland Amazonian forests. This elevation range is especially important for scientific research because it contains exceptionally high species diversity and allows researchers to study how ecosystems and species respond to changing climate, land-use pressures, and human activity. ACA supports field stations and research sites where university students, early-career scientists, and established researchers conduct studies in ecology, zoology, botany, hydrology, geology, biogeochemistry, conservation biology, and related disciplines. One of ACA’s best-known initiatives is the Monitoring of the Andean Amazon Project, or MAAP. The project analyzes satellite and remote-sensing data to identify and investigate forest loss across the Andean Amazon. It combines NASA Earth-observation information and forest-loss datasets with higher-resolution imagery from commercial providers to examine the causes and geographic patterns of deforestation. Its reporting has documented impacts associated with infrastructure, hydroelectric projects, fires, cattle ranching, gold mining, oil-palm cultivation, petroleum extraction, and agriculture. By translating remote-sensing analysis into accessible case studies and policy-relevant findings, MAAP is intended to support government action and conservation responses. ACA also promotes sustainable livelihoods as a means of protecting intact forest. Through its Brazil Nut Project and its partnership with ACCA, the organization has worked with castanheiros, or Brazil nut harvesters, in southwestern Amazonia. Technical assistance has included mapping Brazil nut trees, improving extraction trails, developing forest-management plans, and helping producers secure formal concessions and approvals. Brazil nut harvesting can provide a major share of household income for participating families, creating an economic rationale for maintaining native forest rather than converting it to other uses. A central conservation site associated with ACA is the Los Amigos Conservation Concession in Peru’s Madre de Dios region. Established in 2000 with ACCA, Los Amigos was described as the world’s first private conservation concession. It protects a large area of old-growth Amazonian forest and supports conservation education, sustainable resource-management training, and scientific research. The adjacent Los Amigos Biological Station, known as CICRA, has hosted researchers, field courses, biodiversity inventories, and studies across numerous scientific disciplines. ACA’s other principal field locations include the Wayqecha Cloud Forest Research Center in Peru and work undertaken by ACA-Bolivia in and around Madidi National Park and the remaining pampas ecosystem. Wayqecha protects high-elevation cloud forest and serves as a research and education site for cloud-forest ecology, climate change, and species adaptation. Overall, ACA positions itself as a science-led conservation organization that links landscape protection with local economic opportunity, evidence-based policy, and the training of future Amazonian scientists and conservationists.

Amazon Conservation Association was established in 1999 by tropical ecologists Adrian Forsyth and Enrique Ortiz as a nonprofit dedicated to conserving the Amazon Basin through scientific research, sustainable resource management, and improved land-use policy. From the beginning, ACA developed an international and partnership-oriented structure rather than operating solely as a United States organization. Its work has been closely connected with ACCA in Peru and ACA-Bolivia, enabling conservation activities across major Amazonian landscapes in Peru and Bolivia. The organization’s early strategy emphasized the creation and support of field research sites along the Andes-to-Amazon elevation gradient. This gradient links high-elevation cloud forest with lowland rainforest and contains exceptionally rich biological communities. By providing access to field stations and research infrastructure, ACA sought to improve scientific understanding while training students and researchers who could contribute to long-term conservation in the region. In 2000, ACA and ACCA established the Los Amigos Conservation Concession in Madre de Dios, Peru. The concession represented an important development in private conservation because it placed a large tract of old-growth Amazonian forest under a dedicated conservation-management framework. The Los Amigos Biological Station, or CICRA, became the operational and scientific center of the site. It supported research, biodiversity inventories, field courses, conservation education, and training in natural-resource management. During the mid-2000s, CICRA was described as one of the most active research stations in the Amazon Basin, hosting researchers and assistants on a continuing basis and supporting projects covering subjects from animal behavior and plant science to hydrology, geology, and biogeochemistry. ACA also developed programs that connected forest conservation with rural livelihoods. Through its Brazil Nut Project, the organization and its Peruvian partner worked with small-scale producers in Madre de Dios and surrounding areas. The program helped producers map Brazil nut stands, improve extraction practices, prepare management plans, and pursue formal concessions. In 2006, ACCA assisted 93 producers in obtaining government approval for Brazil nut extraction across 80,598 acres of forest and helped them seek long-term concession contracts. The broader conservation logic was that economically valuable, sustainably harvested forest products could strengthen local incentives to retain native forest. The Wayqecha Cloud Forest Research Center became another important component of ACA’s field network. Located at approximately 3,000 meters above sea level and covering about 1,450 acres, Wayqecha protects cloud-forest habitat that also functions as a buffer for Peru’s Manú National Park. Since 2003, ACA has supported competitive grants for Peruvian students and international researchers studying cloud-forest ecology and conservation, including questions related to climate change and species adaptation. ACA-Bolivia has worked to improve understanding of the ecology of Madidi National Park and the remaining pampas ecosystem, including habitat associated with the maned wolf. These activities illustrate the organization’s broader approach: combining site-based protection with scientific investigation and partnerships with institutions responsible for managing protected landscapes. In more recent conservation practice, ACA has placed substantial emphasis on satellite-based monitoring through the Monitoring of the Andean Amazon Project, known as MAAP. MAAP analyzes forest-loss events and combines public Earth-observation datasets with high-resolution imagery to investigate the drivers of deforestation. Its case studies have covered fires, mining, cattle ranching, agriculture, oil-palm plantations, hydroelectric infrastructure, and extractive industries. The project’s findings are designed to help policymakers, conservation organizations, and local actors identify threats and respond with targeted measures. Across its history, ACA has therefore operated as a research and conservation organization rather than a conventional commercial brand. Its principal outputs are scientific knowledge, monitoring reports, protected landscapes, management capacity, training, and partnerships that support the long-term conservation of Amazonian ecosystems and the people who depend on them.

1. 2006Brazil nut producers receive formal-management support

   ACCA assisted 93 small-scale Brazil nut producers in obtaining approval for extraction across 80,598 acres of forest and supported management planning and concession applications.

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2. 2003Wayqecha research-grant program begins

   ACA began offering competitive support for Peruvian and international researchers studying cloud-forest science and conservation at the Wayqecha site.

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3. 2000Los Amigos Conservation Concession established

   ACA and its Peruvian partner ACCA established the Los Amigos Conservation Concession in Madre de Dios, Peru, creating a large private conservation area and associated research platform.

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4. 1999Amazon Conservation Association founded

   Tropical ecologists Adrian Forsyth and Enrique Ortiz established ACA as a United States nonprofit focused on Amazonian biodiversity conservation, scientific research, sustainable resource management, and land-use policy.

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Science-led Amazon conservation nonprofit combining biodiversity research, protected-area management, sustainable livelihoods, remote-sensing analysis, community partnerships, and conservation education.

• Monitoring of the Andean Amazon ProjectRemote sensing and conservation monitoring

  MAAP uses satellite observations, forest-loss datasets, and high-resolution imagery to identify and analyze deforestation across the Andean Amazon. Its reports investigate specific forest-loss events and their likely causes, including fires, mining, cattle ranching, agriculture, oil-palm cultivation, hydroelectric infrastructure, and extractive activities. The project converts geospatial analysis into regular public case studies intended to inform policy, enforcement, and conservation action.

• Brazil Nut ProjectSustainable livelihoods and forest management

  The Brazil Nut Project supports castanheiros, or Brazil nut harvesters, in southwestern Amazonia. Activities include mapping trees, improving collection trails, teaching more efficient harvesting methods, developing forest-management plans, and assisting producers with formal concessions and government approvals. The program treats sustainable Brazil nut income as a practical incentive for communities to maintain native forest and resist conversion to other land uses.

• Los Amigos Conservation ConcessionPrivate conservation area2000

  Located in Peru’s Madre de Dios region, Los Amigos protects approximately 360,000 acres of old-growth Amazonian forest. ACA and ACCA use the concession for conservation management, scientific research, environmental education, and natural-resource training. The site includes the Los Amigos Biological Station, or CICRA, which provides infrastructure for field research, biodiversity inventories, student training, and conservation courses.

• Wayqecha Cloud Forest Research CenterResearch and conservation field station

  Wayqecha is a high-elevation cloud-forest research center in Peru covering approximately 1,450 acres at about 3,000 meters above sea level. It helps buffer Manú National Park and supports research into cloud-forest ecology, climate change, and species adaptation. ACA has also used the site to support student and international research through competitive grants.

1. Amazon Conservation Association
2. Amazon Conservation Association official website