Thursday 22 May 2008

"My aim is to support the conservation of the unique Tambopata region – especially from the destructive building of damaging highways and dams, through sharing 'public science' with a broad network of people," said Ernesto Ráez-Luna, who was presented with the award by HRH The Princess Royal, at a ceremony in London last night.

Ráez-Luna has been working to help safeguard this almost untouched part of the Amazon from the threat of four hydro-electric dams, a gold and oil boom and the construction of a major highway. The region is a key area of biodiversity in the country.

"This approach allows local communities to do many things such as confirm the accuracy of environmental impact reports, plan sustainable land use activities such as organic coffee growing, and inform us of illegal activities occurring in remote regions," he explained.

The Tambopata river basin

The Tambopata river basin in Peru is a wildlife rich headwater that links to the Amazon via the Madeira river.

Today, the region is mostly untouched wilderness, but the area is threatened by the planned construction of hydro-electric dams and a new Peru-Brazil Highway. It is also under threat from gold and oil extraction

Cross-border conservation

Not only is Ráez-Luna educating and rallying local people to care and work for the protection of the region but he is managing and coordinating an approach, never previously attempted in Peru – a cross border working group of over 50 stakeholder groups, to plan and fund a way forward to safeguard the natural environment of the area.

This will also improve the economy of the region too.

Glyn Davies, Director of Programmes at WWF-UK, said: "It's a great pleasure to recognise Ernesto's hard work and great dedication to involving many stakeholders in plans for economic development that are sensitive to global environmental issues – such as the Amazon's headwaters. WWF-UK appreciates the many partnerships needed to achieve conservation and sustainable development, and Ernesto has shown a great way of forging partnerships for conservation".