The Payamino Project is a thriving community conservation and development project. Situated in the foothills of the andes East of Quito, the indigenous community of San Jose de Payamino entered an agreement with Aalborg Zoo in 2002 to protect their forest and way of life from the increasing pressures of oil, logging and mining companies eager to exploit the Payamino’s 27,000 hectares of primary lowland rainforest.
This unique agreement supports the community with education, healthcare and sustainable development projects, allows world class research and ecotourism to be undertaken in this unexplored pocket of the amazon and ultimately protects the future of this area.
A Vision for the Payamino…
By the year 2012 the Payamino/Sumaco area will be recognised as a special place in the world to be valued and protected, both locally and internationally, acknowledging that its environment is significantly important, and respecting that substainably it supports an indigenous community who enjoy a healthy, secure, and natural way of life.
San Jose de Payamino was the central project location during my recent visit to Ecuador for ‘All Other Things Being Equal’, an interdisciplinary arts collaboration between a photographer, a designer and myself.
Please take a look at the site to learn more about the community and project and check out Paul’s blog covering his experiences of living in the community over the past year.
Cheers!