2025 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE скачать в хорошем качестве

2025 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Today, I am writing from the heart of our newly expanded Pitalala Reserve in the Amazon to share an important message. As we begin the new year, I am more convinced than ever that direct land purchase is the most effective—and perhaps only—way to achieve real conservation in the world’s most threatened biodiversity hotspots. We have witnessed a concerning trend: the proliferation of “protected areas” that exist primarily on paper. These top-down designations, often decided by officials far removed from the rainforest, fail to bring about change on the ground. Because land ownership remains unchanged, extractive concessions persist and funding rarely reaches the front lines. This “paper protection” comes at a heavy cost: lost opportunity. Imagine the impact if those resources were instead channeled directly to indigenous groups and non-profits actively managing real-world sanctuaries, hiring park rangers, and undertaking reforestation. The results would be visible both on the ground and from space. This is why we focus on in-situ protection. It is precisely what the word “Khamai” means: on the ground. 2025 was a landmark year for our organization: Pitalala Reserve: We expanded this sanctuary to 152 hectares, protecting an unparalleled number of species per unit area—perhaps more than any comparable land purchase on Earth. Community Stewardship: We partnered with the Apuya Kichwa community to make them stewards of this land, successfully reclaiming it from extractive interests. Arlequín Reserve: In the cloud forest, we established a 33-hectare haven for the only surviving population of the Critically Endangered Mindo Harlequin Toad. Scientific Breakthroughs: Our team found eight survivors—half of all individuals seen since the species’ rediscovery. This includes “Mami,” the first female sighted since 1989, and the first tadpoles seen in nearly 50 years! Our team has grown to 18 members, and 2025 was our strongest fundraising year to date, with triple the revenue of previous years. We achieved this while maintaining an extremely low overhead of 9% and seeding an endowment to sustain our work for decades to come. Thank you to the 300 backers and 20 institutions who made this possible. Together, we are creating real-world protected areas and supporting the people who give their lives to protect them. What comes next? The situation in the Amazon is shifting fast. The doubling of the price of gold has resulted in the uncontrolled proliferation of new mining fronts. For this reason we have decided to set ourselves a much more ambitious goal: To protect an additional 2,000 hectares of Amazon Rainforest in partnership with the Apuya Kichwa Community. Please join our mailing list to receive our annual report and our plan for 2026. This is perhaps the last year we have an opportunity to make a lasting legacy for the future of the Amazon. 👉 www.khamai.bio/pitalala_reserve.html