Support Wildlife Conservation at Yapankam

My name is Joel Cooper, I live in one of the most biodiverse forests on the planet, the Chocó Andino in Ecuador.

I started sleeping in a tent through heavy downpours, sitting in the early mornings watching that immensity of water falling from the sky, thinking, worried, what the hell am I doing, what on earth did I get myself into? I’m not an architect, I’m not an engineer, I’m not a biologist. I had never built with bamboo, never lived in the wilderness, I have never preserved forest.

Now, after 3 years of living in the forest, of creating and building with bamboo to avoid cutting down trees, of listening to the forest, of living among insects, birds, reptiles, and mammals, I am relearning not only how to live but also the true meaning of my life. I dedicate my life to what I love: conserving and protecting these forests.

I chose a path that is less commercial and more conservative toward the conservation of my Reserva Yapankam, avoiding the construction of typical mass-tourism attractions.

Instead, I have decided to keep the forest as it is and allowed pastures to return to forest through reforestation with native species and, mostly, through passive regeneration.

I have preferred to step back and give nature its own space, but at the same time it has made it harder for me to generate income to keep caring for this forest—until more tourists seeking pure, untouched nature visit my reserve.

There are also threats to my Yapankam Reserve and its wildlife. The one I have fought the hardest against for more than 2 years—the greatest threat—is hunting. Imagine 9 or more hunting dogs followed at a distance by people with weapons. They do not discriminate; everything counts, nothing is spared: from guans, peccaries, felines, coatis, armadillos, to deer—everything is hunted.

THEY ENTER TO SOW TERROR IN A FOREST OF PERFECT HARMONY.

This campaign will allow Yapankam to expand its reserve by acquiring land owned by people dedicated to hunting and pig farming, which also pollutes with more than 60 tons of pig feces annually one of the cleanest rivers in the area. This land is also being used for cattle ranching and monocultures of hybrid naranjilla, which require constant use of chemicals.

Your contribution, even if it’s just 1 dollar, will help endemic species, those endangered or vulnerable, regain the harmony that their lives deserve—the balance that sustains the forest, the balance that sustains humankind.

Which of them would you like to adopt with your contribution?

Western Dwarf Squirrel (microsciurus mimulus)

Puma (Puma concolor)

Plain-backed Antpitta (Grallaria Haplonota)

Many species of Glass Frogs

Click here to adopt one of them, to give them back their space and their life.

Our goal is $97,000 for 67 hectares and for wildlife monitoring equipment.