Ensuring that stewards of the most essential ecosystems on earth are able to incorporate leading edge science in managing their lands
In the Peruvian Amazon, nearly 20 million hectares of tropical forests and freshwater ecosystems are protected by the Ministry of the Environment’s National Protected Areas Service (SERNANP). As the fourth largest tropical forest in the world, the health of these ecosystems, and biodiversity are crucial to our planet’s wellbeing. Yet more than half of those park leaders charged with protecting this precious territory do not have access to the scientific information necessary to manage it effectively.
Our Science for Parks program aims to change that. A partnership between the Sabin Center and SERNANP, with support from Colorado State University and Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (Catholic University of Peru), the program strategically addresses gaps in scientific capacity and staff skills for nearly 700 park rangers and the technical and administrative teams that support them.
Sabin Center Senior Fellow and Wake Forest Research Professor Carol Mitchell leads the Science for Parks program, which has been funded through 2026 thanks to a generous grant from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.
Programming Highlights
Inaugural SIMAP-Peru (November 2025)
The Global Gold Standard for Protected Areas Management, Adapted for Peru
The First International Seminar on the Management of Protected Natural Areas in Peru (SIMAP Peru) welcomed 25 professionals, park rangers, Indigenous leaders, researchers, and specialists from Peru, Mexico, Chile, Paraguay, and the Dominican Republic for several days of learning in the heart of the Tambopata National Reserve, one of the most biodiverse areas on the planet.
An adaptation of Colorado State University’s Center for Protected Area Management’s renowned International Seminar for Protected Area Management, which has trained nearly 700 professionals since 1989, the program is designed to strengthen technical capacities, develop local leadership, and promote new forms of co-management and international cooperation for conservation.
How competitive was
the inaugural SIMAP Peru?
Our team received nearly 300 applications for fewer than 30 spots. We’ll be hosting the program again in November 2026.
