Amazon Conservation Team
 |
|
| Founded | 1996 |
|---|---|
| Type | Non-governmental organization |
| Focus |
Environmentalism, Indigenous rights |
| Location | |
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Key people
|
Mark Plotkin, Liliana Madrigal, Mireya Mayor |
|
Revenue
|
US$ 4,927,682 (2014) |
| Website | amazonteam.org |
The Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) is a non-profit organization that works in partnership with indigenous people of tropical South America in conserving the biodiversity of the Amazon rainforest as well as the culture and land of its indigenous people.
ACT was formed in 1996 by ethnobotanist Dr. Mark Plotkin and Costa Rican conservationist Liliana Madrigal, and so far has mainly been active in the northwest, northeast, and southern regions of the Amazon.
In 2002, ACT received the United Nations Environment Programme Global 500 Award in recognition of their conservation achievements. In 2008, the organization received the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship from the Skoll Foundation. In November 2010, ACT was recognized as a 2010 Tech Awards Laureate by the prestigious Tech Museum in San Jose, for their work with technology to help map the Amazon. In 2015, ACT received the 'Seeing a Better World' Award from DigitalGlobe, a leading provider of high resolution satellite imagery, aerial photos and geospatial content.
In its efforts to achieve the land protection objectives of its indigenous partners, ACT employs a stepped procedure: first, participatory ethnographic mapping and ethno-environmental diagnostics are conducted; second, ACT helps the tribes/communities develop management plans that embrace both land protection and sustainable development; and third, ACT provides conservation and land monitoring capacity building to the tribes/communities while bringing their representatives in communication with state environmental enforcement agencies. To this last end, ACT conducts an annual indigenous park ranger training program certified by the International Ranger Federation. Areas ethnographically mapped by ACT in collaboration with local tribes include Brazil’s 2,800,000-hectare Xingu Indigenous Reserve, its 248,000-hectare Suruí Indigenous Reserve, and its 4,000,000-hectare Tumucumaque Indigenous Reserve. The Suruí Reserve mapping was facilitated by technical assistance from Google Earth Outreach, which also trained the tribe in remote monitoring.
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