OUR HISTORY
Project Amazonas was founded in 1994 in the State of Florida (IRS non-profit identification #65-0515019) and in the Republic of Peru, where we have had regional non-profit status since 1994, and national status since 2000. We are a non-profit, non-religious, and non-political humanitarian, conservation and education organization. Our operations are in the State of Loreto in the Peruvian Amazon (NE Peru). In Peru, our legal name is "Associacíon Civil Proyecto Amazonas". Our activities are overseen by a board of US and Peruvian directors.

We were created though the efforts of individuals who had visited the Peruvian Amazon region, fallen in love with it, and who wanted to do something positive for the Amazon. Many of these people had traveled to the Amazon with Margarita Tours, an eco-tour operator in the region since 1983. The principals of the company also wished to return something substantial to the people and the environment of the Peruvian Amazon, so together they founded Project Amazonas. Involvement with Project Amazonas is open to anyone who shares our interests and goals in the Amazon, irrespective of nationality, race, religion, political affiliation, or other criteria. We welcome the support and partnership of corporations, other non-profits, and individuals.

THE STRUCTURE OF OUR ORGANIZATION
Since our creation, we have remained focused on working in, and serving the people of the Peruvian Amazon, specifically in the State of Loreto. We believe we can best accomplish our objectives by concentrating efforts in a restricted geographic area (even though Loreto is approximately the size of California!), by winning the confidence and trust of the people in that area, and establishing a proven track record. We are a lean, mean, effective machine - we have no central office in the US, and board members, officers, consultants, and volunteers all donate their expertise, materials and resources, and their time. Our only employees are Peruvian, and work as field station caretakers, managers, boat crews, and project supervisors. In compliance with Peruvian law regulating non-profit organizations, Project Amazonas also retains the services of a Peruvian CPA who keeps the books and ensures that the organization files all necessary tax and registration papers and reports with local and national governments in Peru.

Our Objectives & Philosophy
Our objectives and philosophy are simple. We want to help provide the people of the Peruvian Amazon with adequate modern health care and health education, and to give them the tools to sustainably use and conserve the natural environment of the Amazon rainforest. We want to encourage self-reliance and self-sufficiency where possible, and do not believe in 'hand-outs'. We do believe that the people of the Amazon lead rich and rewarding lives, and that they possess a wealth of knowledge about living and thriving in their environment - we want to encourage them to retain and to value that knowledge. We recognize that the modern world presents many challenges to people living in rural settings, and that there is great pressure and temptation to utilize resources in destructive and non-sustainable manners. We hope to provide the people of the Amazon with the knowledge and tools to wisely use and manage their natural resources, and to value their natural environment before it is largely destroyed. We believe that healthy, happy people making a decent living in rural areas are the best weapon against the unregulated destruction of rainforests. People who obtain their food, building materials, medicines, canoes, and trade or barter items from the rainforest, are people who value the rainforest in its standing state. When such people are forced to move to cities to obtain education, or cash for medicines, tools, and essentials, the forest is left open to loggers and ranchers - people who value it only in its flattened state. We believe that you cannot save the Amazon rainforest while ignoring its people!

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