International Rangers Federation 

Dr Jane Goodall Hope and Inspiration Ranger Award

Order Medal to Women’s Merit, Ministry of Women, Peru

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TEDxTALK Tatiana Espinosa (Spanish)

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The Amazon is exploited for logging, poaching & gold mining. Tatiana works to protect almost 1000 hectares of ancient Amazonian forest. Help her.

Tatiana Espinosa

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Extinction by omission: Peru’s disappearing ancient shihuahuaco trees

Meet Peruvian woman who has been internationally recognized for her commitment to the environment

Peruvian conservationist wins Jane Goodall ranger award

Donate to Tatiana - A Forestry Engineer Saving Mother Trees

Tatiana is the General Director of ARBIO Peru, a female led organization protecting 916 hectares of Amazonian rainforest with a mission to implement forest conservation actions involving civil society and the private sector.

SDG 13 Climate Action

SDG 15 Life on Land

Protect Forests and Plant Trees

## In short

Tatiana is a Forestry Engineer, Researcher and Ranger fighting to save thousand-year old “mother trees” of the Amazon rainforest from illegal logging. 

**Oldest forests of Peru**
I studied forestry engineering to be able to work in this beautiful environment that we have here in the Amazon. After years of work with NGOs and for the government, I started my own organization, ARBIO Peru. We’re a women-led organization that protects 916 hectares of Amazonian rainforest since 2010. 

**Illegal logging**
Shihuahuaco trees, aka “mother trees” have roots that stretch several kilometers, take 700 years to grow a meter in diameter and aid our fight against climate change by absorbing upwards of 40-50 tons of carbon dioxide. This slow-growing wood is very heavy and hard, and has sadly become a popular material for floorboards. Illegal loggers are cutting down approximately 74 mother trees per day.

**Caretaker of mother trees**
We research and patrol the ARBIO Forest in the Amazon jungle. Our research is the first to be done in this area and we're here to show the world that not only are we surrounded by illegal loggers, but this entire region is under their threat.

##What we have achieved
We study wildlife in collaboration with the Centro de Ornitología y Biodiversidad (CORBIDI) within ArBio’s forest, as well as the inventory of Amazon Big Trees in danger of illegal logging, for their monitoring and conservation. There is great potential for carrying out studies on the reproductive activities of Hylidae frog families, birdwatching, ethology or behavior of large mammals, arthropod diversity, and topics related to population ecology. To give you an idea of just how biodiverse this area is, here are some of our findings: 

We have registered 29 species of mammals so far, this wealth of species indicates that the ecosystem is well preserved. As there is an abundance of prey up to five species of felines can be observed. 

- Between 2016 and 2017, we made a study of herpetofauna of the forest of Arbio Peru. 38 species of amphibians and 31 reptiles were counted. 
- In 2016 we made the first study of birds. 259 species were found. 
- We have obtained a registry of 294 outstanding trees of 78 different species in 25 families in 90 hectares of the forest. 

In November 2019 I received the Jane Goodall Hope and Inspiration Ranger Award for more than a decade of hard work fighting illegal logging and monitoring wildlife in order to protect the Amazonian rainforest and its biodiversity. 

## My organization

**Rainforest Defence**
Arbio is a Peruvian non-profit association founded in 2010 in Puerto Maldonado, Madre de Dios. We manage and protect 916 hectares of Amazon rainforest (2264 acres) in the watershed of the Las Piedras river, Madre de Dios. The organization is led by women with the purpose to implement forest conservation actions involving civil society and the private sector. In 2006 the area was granted concession for 40 years by the Peruvian state. 

Since the construction of the Interoceanic Highway in 2011 areas of primary forest, or virgin forest, are threatened by illegal logging, agriculture and other activities that lead to deforestation. Our permanent presence with rangers protects the area and promotes the spread of information about the importance of conserving the forest in the neighboring communities.

In 2012 we created an online System of Protection of Hectares to support our activities financially. This allows anyone to be a Defender of the Forest by protecting a hectare annually for $55. The system allows you to select a section on a map to protect, a certificate is generated in the name of the donor and if it is a gift, the system allows you to enter the name and email of the person who will receive a certificate in their name.

Since 2018 we have had a System of Protection of Large Amazonian Trees in the works to fight the high threat of illegal logging in the river basin. Due to the Forest Inventory carried out between 2016 and 2017, identification and information was available of 300 trees belonging to species at risk of illegal logging. That’s when we realized the new for the new platform so the large trees can be protected by anyone in the world.

In short

Tatiana is a Forestry Engineer, Researcher and Ranger fighting to save thousand-year old “mother trees” of the Amazon rainforest from illegal logging.

Oldest forests of Peru
I studied forestry engineering to be able to work in this beautiful environment that we have here in the Amazon. After years of work with NGOs and for the government, I started my own organization, ARBIO Peru. We’re a women-led organization that protects 916 hectares of Amazonian rainforest since 2010.

Illegal logging
Shihuahuaco trees, aka “mother trees” have roots that stretch several kilometers, take 700 years to grow a meter in diameter and aid our fight against climate change by absorbing upwards of 40-50 tons of carbon dioxide. This slow-growing wood is very heavy and hard, and has sadly become a popular material for floorboards. Illegal loggers are cutting down approximately 74 mother trees per day.

Caretaker of mother trees
We research and patrol the ARBIO Forest in the Amazon jungle. Our research is the first to be done in this area and we're here to show the world that not only are we surrounded by illegal loggers, but this entire region is under their threat.

##What we have achieved
We study wildlife in collaboration with the Centro de Ornitología y Biodiversidad (CORBIDI) within ArBio’s forest, as well as the inventory of Amazon Big Trees in danger of illegal logging, for their monitoring and conservation. There is great potential for carrying out studies on the reproductive activities of Hylidae frog families, birdwatching, ethology or behavior of large mammals, arthropod diversity, and topics related to population ecology. To give you an idea of just how biodiverse this area is, here are some of our findings:

We have registered 29 species of mammals so far, this wealth of species indicates that the ecosystem is well preserved. As there is an abundance of prey up to five species of felines can be observed.

Between 2016 and 2017, we made a study of herpetofauna of the forest of Arbio Peru. 38 species of amphibians and 31 reptiles were counted.
In 2016 we made the first study of birds. 259 species were found.
We have obtained a registry of 294 outstanding trees of 78 different species in 25 families in 90 hectares of the forest.

In November 2019 I received the Jane Goodall Hope and Inspiration Ranger Award for more than a decade of hard work fighting illegal logging and monitoring wildlife in order to protect the Amazonian rainforest and its biodiversity.

My organization

Rainforest Defence
Arbio is a Peruvian non-profit association founded in 2010 in Puerto Maldonado, Madre de Dios. We manage and protect 916 hectares of Amazon rainforest (2264 acres) in the watershed of the Las Piedras river, Madre de Dios. The organization is led by women with the purpose to implement forest conservation actions involving civil society and the private sector. In 2006 the area was granted concession for 40 years by the Peruvian state.

Since the construction of the Interoceanic Highway in 2011 areas of primary forest, or virgin forest, are threatened by illegal logging, agriculture and other activities that lead to deforestation. Our permanent presence with rangers protects the area and promotes the spread of information about the importance of conserving the forest in the neighboring communities.

In 2012 we created an online System of Protection of Hectares to support our activities financially. This allows anyone to be a Defender of the Forest by protecting a hectare annually for $55. The system allows you to select a section on a map to protect, a certificate is generated in the name of the donor and if it is a gift, the system allows you to enter the name and email of the person who will receive a certificate in their name.

Since 2018 we have had a System of Protection of Large Amazonian Trees in the works to fight the high threat of illegal logging in the river basin. Due to the Forest Inventory carried out between 2016 and 2017, identification and information was available of 300 trees belonging to species at risk of illegal logging. That’s when we realized the new for the new platform so the large trees can be protected by anyone in the world.

The Amazon is exploited for logging, poaching and gold mining. Tatiana works to protect almost 1000 hectares of ancient Amazonian forest, where no police patrol. 

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