Our Mission
MISSION STATEMENT:
United Corridors A.C. works to unite fragmented landscapes using conservation corridors and landscape enhancement techniques to reduce extinctions of fragment vulnerable species. United Corridors A.C. is a scientific research and advocacy conservation organization that addresses the problems of unplanned development and deforestation that leads to fragmentation. Latin America countries are rapidly developing, resulting in deforestation. Services we offer include large-scale monitoring programs, community monitoring programs, corridor research and development, community-lead programs, recycling solutions, species-focused projects, eco-tourism exploration, landscape planning for development, outreach, and education programs.
NGO VISION:
United Corridors A.C. vision is to build collaborations between adjacent institutions, governments, agencies, and others interested in the formation of a network of connected continuous forests to prevent species extinction resulting from fragmentation. United Corridors strives to become the clearinghouse for corridor resources to support local community-driven projects, and to provide data on worldwide corridor initiatives.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES:
Goals include projects to work on landscape connectivity in Mexico to conserve and connect routes for migrating monarch butterflies and birds, while respecting the livelihoods of the communities that live and work in these areas. Priority conservation areas will be identified through a collaborative effort across country and political boundaries. Efforts will be focused on creating a culture of conservation through projects that empower the community and train these local people in collecting scientific data through large-scale monitoring programs.
HISTORY:
United Corridors was founded by Jennifer Lowry in 2010 and with the help of concerned Mexican citizens, it became a legally registered Asociación Civil (A.C.), non-profit in Querétaro, Mexico in 2013. After years of research experience, travel, and witnessing conservation problems first hand, it was determined that different approach was needed; a solution that needs to be flexible to fit the needs of civilization, a solution that needs to take economics, politics, culture, and the community into consideration. Upon my first visit to La Selva Biological Station in the rainforest of Costa Rica, I was dispirited to witness such a degree of deforestation from the window of the airplane. After questioning scientific professionals, the problem of deforestation was rooted not only in the local economy, but was also driven by the market demands of more developed countries. The solution to deforestation was more then the obvious aspects of buying and preserving land. Private outsourced land owned by foreign countries took some forests as well to start it's initial path of coffee, chocolate, or fruit to grocery stores outside of Latin America. However, a trend was noted; most of the productive land was in valleys, where the flat land makes it easy to harvest. Mountain ranges seemed fairly intact, as well as large rivers, since these landscape features are difficult to develop. Ideas starting forming; this concluded that corridors would be a logical solution, using landscape features that are already intact. With the added consequences of climate change, many species are shifting their home ranges to adapt to changes in resources, especially food or breeding resources. Corridors could also assist with this change, since most species will not cross hostile environments, such as short-grass animal pastures and large-scale crop production, growing cities and human infrastructure, devoid of cover, food, and water.
UNITED CORRIDORS PRINCIPALS:
To understand corridor and landscape ecology through scientific research.
To work with local communities by providing them environmental education and offer them ideas on how to use their forest resources to produce a eco-sustainable income such as monitoring, payments through Ecosystem Services (PES), eco-crafts, eco-tourism, and other creative ideas.
To evaluate the conservation problem from all sides and discover a working solution through collaboration.
To create and maintain a collaborative with professionals in corridor research or interests.
To work cooperatively with governments, corporations, communities, schools, organizations, and individuals toward a collective and realizable conservation goal.
To be open to new and creative ideas for potential solutions.