The Rainforest Site is proud to be partnered with four nonprofit land trust organizations that are making important strides in the protection of some of the most majestic and imperiled forests on the planet. Dedicated to identifying habitats in jeopardy and developing creative approaches to protecting them, these leaders in conservation benefit from your actions at The Rainforest Site.

Learn more about the work we are achieving together by reading specific project information from our partner organizations below:

Rainforest2Reef (formerly Friends of Calakmul)

Rainforest Conservation Fund

The Nature Conservancy

World Land Trust-US

Rainforest2Reef (formerly Friends of Calakmul)

www.rainforest2reef.org

Founded in 2001, Rainforest2Reef is dedicated to the conservation of jaguars and their habitat, primarily focused on the buffer zone surrounding the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve in southern Mexico. Formed by a small group of scientists and concerned citizens, Rainforest2Reef is committed to reversing the impact of human activities on rainforests, and maintaining the long-term preservation of jaguars and their fragile ecosystem for generations to come.

"Mexico is host to approximately 10% of all plant and animal species in the world."

—Rainforest2Reef

At 1.8 million acres the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve is the second largest protected area in Mexico, and among the few remaining areas in the Americas where jaguars still roam. However, only the core zone of 600,000 acres is protected from human activity by the Mexican government. The other 1.2 million acres remain threatened by logging, illegal hunting, slash and burn agriculture, and development.

Rainforest2Reef's mission is to protect 350,000 acres of threatened jaguar habitat in the buffer zone of the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve. Working with community landowners (called ejidatarios) who live there, they execute conservation contracts in the buffer zone to forbid human disruption. Rainforest2Reef offers the landowners a better economic alternative to deforestation, while simultaneously increasing the long-term protection of jaguar habitat.

Rainforest2Reef's primary objectives are to:

• Conserve 350,000 acres of prime jaguar habitat in the southwestern buffer zone of the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve

• Protect jaguars and 60,000 other species of plants and animals

• Support on-going research about and monitoring of jaguar and bird ecology

• Help local communities in and around the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve benefit from jaguar conservation

• Promote environmental education about the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve

• Create and capitalize trust funds for long-term sustainable financing of newly protected areas in the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve

Calakmul Biosphere Reserve

Calakmul Biosphere Reserve is located in the heart of the great Selva Maya Rainforest, the second largest rainforest in the Americas after the Amazon. The Selva Maya links the Mexican forests of the southern Yucatan with Belize and Guatemala. There are 350 species of birds that either inhabit or migrate through Calakmul, which is 33 percent of all bird species in Mexico. Over 100 of them are considered endangered.

"Every second, a slice of rainforest the size of a football field is mowed down. That's 86,400 football fields of rainforest per day, or over 31 million football fields of rainforest each year."

—The Nature Conservancy

The reserve is home to five of the six species of big cats found in Mexico: Jaguar, Puma, Ocelot, Jaguarundi, and Margay. Worldwide, an estimated 15,000 jaguars remain in the wild. There are only 6,000 jaguars in north and Central America, half of which are found in the Calakmul region, which includes the southern Yucatan of Mexico and surrounding areas of Belize and Guatemala. It is estimated that there are 500 jaguars in the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve. This is the second largest population north of the Amazon.

Alongside its natural legacy, Calakmul carries a cultural legacy. There are some 4,000 archaeological sites found in the reserve and for this reason, in 2002 the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve a World Heritage Site.

Rainforest Conservation Fund

www.rainforestconservation.org

Rainforest Conservation Fund is an all-volunteer organization founded in 1988 that is dedicated to preserving the world's tropical forests. RCF supports ongoing projects in rainforest protection, sustainable development, and environmental education. Its main project is the Reserva Comunal Tamshiyacu-Tahuayo in the Peruvian Amazon. This protected area currently encompasses 800,000 acres, but with enough support could be expanded to over two million acres.

"To cherish what remains of the Earth and to foster its renewal is our only legitimate hope of survival."

—Wendell Berry

The reserve is an exceptional storehouse of biodiversity, even for a rainforest, because it is part of what biologists identify as the Napo area of endemism (specific area of native flora and fauna). This area is the most species-rich in the world in a number of categories, including trees, amphibians, reptiles, and birds.

• The RCTT is home to the most diverse assembly of primate species of any protected land in the world; 14 species, including the Red Uakari.

• There are no villages in the reserve itself, which is rare for a protected area in South America.

• Endangered animals found here include Jaguar, Manatee, Tapir, Pink River Dolphin, Harpy Eagle, Red Uakari Monkey, Paiche (Arapaima gigas — the world's largest freshwater fish), Ocelot, Giant Otter, Giant Anteater, and Taricaya Turtle.

RCF's goals and strategies for the reserve include a commitment to biodiversity through fauna management, habitat protection and recuperation, and research projects. The fauna management program takes into account the rural communities' needs while simultaneously reducing the hunting of primates and other threatened species. It has short term cost for hunters, but there are real social benefits. In addition, alternative strategies — such as the aguaje palm cultivation in agroforestry systems — are being developed to overcome short-term costs to the local people.

The Nature Conservancy

www.nature.org

Since 1951, The Nature Conservancy has been working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. The Nature Conservancy has a four-star Charity Navigator rating. The Conservancy preserves habitats and species by saving the lands and waters they need to survive. Its Adopt an Acre™ program provides critical funds for rainforest protection and restoration. Every year, Adopt an Acre™ chooses an imperiled rainforest site that is in critical need of protection. This year's site is the Rift Valley in Kenya and Tanzania.

"Originally, 6 million square miles of tropical rainforest existed worldwide. Today, only 2.6 million square miles remain."

—The Nature Conservancy

The Rift Valley

East Africa's Rift Valley is a landscape of sweeping savannahs, towering volcanoes, and lush tropical forests. These ancient forests are home to monkeys, forest deer, elephants, leopards, and mankind's closest relative — the chimpanzee. Indeed, the region is often referred to as the "cradle of humanity" due to the number of ancient hominid skulls that have been discovered in the area.

Over the years, the forests have come under severe pressure due to rampant deforestation caused by illegal logging and expanding agriculture. At the turn of the 20th century, 30 percent of Kenya was covered in natural forests — today, slightly less than two percent is forested.

With its project partners, including the Jane Goodall Institute, The Nature Conservancy is working to protect and maintain the Rift Valley's healthy forests while also reforesting bare landscapes. Strategies include:

• Planting trees — more than 30 million so far

• Educating local communities and engaging them in restoration efforts

• Identifying new places that are in need of protection, such as critical wildlife corridors

• Strengthening the enforcement of laws designed to promote sustainable use of wildlife and water outside of formal parks

World Land Trust-US

www.worldlandtrust-us.org

Working in partnership with local conservation organizations, World Land Trust-US buys forestland to protect its exceptionally diverse habitats and endangered species. In order to better conserve critical natural areas around the world, in 2006, World Parks Endowment formed a partnership with World Land Trust of the United Kingdom (founded in 1989), thus creating World Land Trust-US.

Magdalena Valley

The Trust's Magdalena Valley project is located in a 700-mile-long river basin carpeted by lush lowland rainforest. The isolated rainforest there is a biological melting pot, influenced by the flora and fauna from neighboring Amazon, Chaco, and Central American regions. This has given rise to one of the richest assemblages of biodiversity on the planet, with an exceptional diversity of endemic plants, birds, mammals, amphibians, and other groups.

Tragically, colonization and deforestation have resulted in the elimination of nearly four million hectares of forest in little over a decade. Just one remnant of pristine habitat remains, representing the last opportunity to save the Magdalena Valley's unique and diverse flora and fauna. It is largely composed of private land holdings by recent colonists who are eager to exploit the magnificent lowland trees for timber and then establish cattle ranches. Losing this last enclave could push many species to the edge of extinction.

World Land Trust-US has been working with Colombia's leading biodiversity conservation non-profit, Fundación ProAves, to urgently acquire and protect this last fragment. We must act quickly to protect land that is for sale and earmarked for logging. With your support, we can ensure the survival of some of the planet's most imperiled rainforest habitat and species.