Third Millennium Alliance is a nonprofit organization working to preserve the last remnants of Pacific Equatorial Forest in coastal Ecuador, and the wide range of endangered and endemic species therein contained. This region is the most threatened tropical forest in the world, where only 2% of native forest is still intact. We are working to build a Conservation Corridor that preserves 47,000 acres of Pacific Equatorial Forest and implement a regional wildlife conservation program for all six species of endangered cats that are native to the region, including the jaguar and ocelot. In 2007 we established the Jama-Coaque Ecological Reserve, which protects one of the last major remnants of tropical rainforest and cloud forest in coastal Ecuador and is likewise one of the last refuges for endangered wild cats in the region. We are also working to restore habitat through our Micro-Forestation program with local landholders.   

March 26, 2012: Embarking on a one-year research program to conduct a bird inventory in the Jama-Coaque Reserve, in his first two months at the site Mike Ellis has confirmed the presence of 135 different species of birds, three of which are endangered, including the gray-backed hawk, the slaty becard, and the grey-cheeked parakeet.

February 2, 2012: The Jama-Coaque Ecological Reserve has just expanded by 45 acres, through the acquisition of the rainforest and cloudforest at the headwaters of the Ronquillo Stream. Photo-trap cameras have recently confirmed the presence of at least one ocelot in this tract of forest. 

October 31, 2011: The infrared "photo-trap" cameras installed in the Jama-Coaque Reserve have confirmed the presence of the puma-like feline called jaguarundi (Puma yagouaroundi), which joins the ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) as confirmed wild feline inhabitants of the Reserve.

October 17, 2011: We are now accepting applications for the Winter sessions of the Tropical Permaculture and Research Internship and the Community Education and Sustainable Development Internship, located in the Jama-Coaque Reserve and the Community Learning Center, respectively. Both are two-month programs that run from January 5 through March 5. We are also opening up a new opportunity for a Grant Writing Volunteer position in our office in Quito. Please visit Internship to download the program descriptions.

September 8, 2011: We retrieved an infrared photo of an ocelot walking past a camera with a motion sensor that is set up along a trail in the Jama-Coaque Reserve. Click here to view the photo (warning: it is blurry, on account of the animal's speed and the limited capability of the infrared camera).

May 29, 2011: Third Milennium Alliance has just expanded the Jama-Coaque Reserve by an additional 247 acres, through the acquisition of 25 acres of cloud forest and a land easement agreement with a neighboring rainforested property of 222 acres.

January 27, 2011: Third Millennium Alliance has just expanded the northern border of the Jama-Coaque Reserve through the acquisition of 86 acres of cloud forest at the headwaters of the Camarones River. This is one of the last tracts of primary-growth cloud forest left in the entire region. This acquisition was made possible by our sponsors; thank you for helping us bring this biological treasure under protection.

• Double the size of the Jama-Coaque Ecological Reserve through strategic land acquisition 
• Implement a monitoring and conservation program of endangered wild cats throughout the Pacific Equatorial Forest and adjacent communities
• Community "Micro-Foresting" - a subsidy program for small-scale farmers to reforest small patches of deforested land

Ongoing Projects

Internship at The “Bamboo House” Research Station for biological investigation and sustainable systems research, where we grow our own food and manage the land according to the principles of permaculture design.