NATURE AND CULTURE INTERNATIONAL via Crowdrise
December 04, 2012
BENEFITING: NATURE AND CULTURE INTERNATIONAL
THE STORY:
Over the past decade, Nature & Culture International has saved 8.7 million acres at a net cost of only $2.38 per acre. We do this by working with governments to set aside large protected areas, working with communities to create natural reserves, and buying land in critical sites.
How does Nature and Culture get so much done with so little? Four reasons:
- A laser focus on results. We save tropical forests one acre at a time. That is our cardinal measure of success.
- A practical approach. We hand pick projects based on two fundamental questions: How biologically diverse is the land? And is there sufficient local commitment to protect it?
- Small and nimble by design. We're not trying to save the whole world. We take on manageable projects - and stick around until they work.
- A respect for and reliance on local people. The indigenous groups and communities that live in the tropical forests are the key to conserving them. So we only have five US staff, and most of our team live and work in their home countries of Ecuador, Peru and Mexico.
We are guided by the simple idea that conservation won't work if it isn't embraced by -- and in fact led by -- people who live in the areas they are trying to conserve. It is a strategy that has paid off with real and lasting conservation gains - like the 1-million-acre Maijuna Reserve in the Peruvian Amazon, declared earlier this year.
Now, building on our momentum, we have set a goal to save 20 MILLION ACRES BY THE YEAR 2020. To start, we're trying to raise $75,000 by Januay 31, 2013.
Please help get this initiative off the ground with your donation.
Together we can make a difference for people, species and the planet. Thank you.
The Team: $2,441 TOTAL RAISED SO FAR
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