The Upper Amazon Conservancy (UAC) is an organization working to protect the biological and cultural diversity of the upper Amazon River in southeastern Peru. Our field activities are based in Puerto Esperanza, a small town on the Alto Purús River that provides access to the 2.5 million hectare Alto Purús National Park. Remote and roadless, the Park and surrounding forests are home to numerous rare and endangered species of flora and fauna and uncontacted tribes of hunters and gatherers. Nearly the size of Costa Rica and filled with unexplored, hidden streams that form the very headwaters of the Amazon, it is truly one of the wildest places left on earth.
Our work is focused on strengthening the Park and adjacent protected areas, while building the capacity of local indigenous communities to participate in and benefit from conservation activities. Our Mission is to conserve the biological and cultural diversity of the Amazon River headwaters, with a focus on the Alto Purús and adjacent watersheds of southeastern Peru.
The UAC vision for the Alto Purús region includes a network of truly effective protected areas where uncontacted tribes live peacefully without threat from logging and other illegal activities. Since its indigenous inhabitants have always acted as stewards of the Amazon Headwaters ecosystem, local community support is vital to this goal. Our efforts focus on preparing the local population to become engaged in and benefit from conservation activities as a means to strengthen the National Park and adjacent protected areas.
