GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Oct. 30, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bezos Earth Fund, Andes Amazon Fund, Nia Tero, and Rainforest Trust today announced a collective initial pledge of $12.5 million toward permanent, effective, and equitable conservation in Guyana, in support of  President Irfaan Ali’s plan to establish lasting protection for the country's forests, freshwater systems, and globally significant biodiversity. 

The commitment follows President Ali’s announcement to advance the process to permanently protect the over 1 million hectares (2.4 million acres) of the Acarai–Rupununi Corridor, one of the largest intact forest landscapes remaining in the Americas. The proposed conservation initiative represents a significant opportunity to safeguard some of Guyana's most important ecosystems while supporting the rights, livelihoods, and well-being of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

“For Guyana, forest stewardship is not a sacrifice we make for development; it is the foundation of the development model we are building,” said His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, President of Guyana. The Government of Guyana has prioritised biodiversity conservation as a central pillar of its national development agenda, working collaboratively with Indigenous peoples, local communities and other stakeholders to advance conservation efforts that protect critical ecosystems, promote sustainable livelihoods and deliver lasting benefits for present and future generations. We welcome this support as an important first step, and we invite others to join us in securing the Acarai–Rupununi Corridor for generations to come.” 

The commitment is designed to make protection permanent. Donor funding will support the corridor as it gains permanent legal protection, with clearly defined boundaries and lasting safeguards against mining, industrial logging, and other activities incompatible with conservation.

Indigenous Peoples and local communities are central to that effort. Supported projects will uphold their rights, including Free, Prior and Informed Consent, and ensure they play a meaningful role in conservation planning, governance, and management.

“Guyana has an extraordinary opportunity to permanently protect one of the world's last great intact forests,” said James Deutsch, CEO of Rainforest Trust. “President Ali's commitment demonstrates the kind of bold leadership we need to meet global biodiversity goals. At Rainforest Trust, we know that lasting conservation requires strong legal protections, sustained investment, and meaningful partnerships that deliver real benefits to Indigenous Peoples and local communities. We are proud to join this effort to help ensure Guyana's extraordinary natural heritage is protected for generations to come.”

The corridor is one part of Guyana’s wider ambition to protect 30 percent of its lands and waters by 2030. Meeting that goal will require substantially greater and sustained investment from philanthropic, public, and private sources, alongside continued government commitment. The donors see this pledge as a foundation for that effort, including exploring durable financing arrangements to support long-term stewardship, strengthening the public institutions responsible for conservation, and supporting Indigenous Peoples and local communities as essential partners.

“Guyana is showing what 30x30 leadership looks like," said Brian O’Donnell, Director of Campaign for Nature. “The commitment we’re seeing from Guyana’s government, Indigenous Peoples and local communities, and NGOs gives funders the confidence to invest, and to help realize one of the most ambitious conservation visions in the Americas.”

“Guyana has an opportunity to secure permanent protection while its forests are still largely intact,” said Padu Franco, Senior Program Manager for the Andes & Amazon at the Bezos Earth Fund. “Supporting that effort is part of the Bezos Earth Fund’s wider commitment to the Amazon rainforest, which focuses on forests whose protection can safeguard both biodiversity and large stores of carbon. This pledge backs Guyana’s conservation ambitions and the Indigenous stewardship that has helped keep these forests standing.”

"We welcome Guyana’s commitment to permanently protecting the Acarai-Rupununi Corridor,” said Megan MacDowell, Executive Director of the Andes Amazon Fund. “Situated in the Guiana Shield region of the Amazon biome, this unique transition zone harbors extraordinary and largely unstudied biodiversity, including species found almost exclusively in this part of the world. Enduring long-term protection of this landscape with surrounding communities remains essential to the region's future."

The collective pledge, which brings together new and existing funding dedicated to these conservation objectives, will be implemented through conservation organizations and other eligible partners working in Guyana, in collaboration with the Government of Guyana, Indigenous Peoples, and local communities. The donors look forward to continued collaboration with the Government of Guyana, Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and conservation partners as the country advances its 30x30 ambitions, and invite other public and private funders to join them.

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About Guyana’s 30x30 Plan
Guyana is working to protect 30% of its land and sea by 2030. That target is part of the country’s Low Carbon Development Strategy. About 85% of Guyana is forested, and roughly 8.4% of its land is in the National Protected Area System. The centerpiece of the plan is the over 1 million-hectare (2.4 million-acre) Acarai-Rupununi Corridor, which Guyana has identified as one of several significant areas for long-term biodiversity conservation as part of the country’s commitment to achieving the global 30x30 target. That would roughly double the country’s protected-area footprint and bring it about halfway to its 30x30 goal. The plan is led by the Ministry of Natural Resources, Guyana Forestry Commission, and Protected Areas Commission, with Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Its priorities are sustainable financing, ecosystem service valuation, and integrated biodiversity monitoring. The country’s 30x30 plan is being developed with the support of SPACES, Campaign for Nature, and other partners. www.guyana30x30.com

About Bezos Earth Fund
The Bezos Earth Fund, guided by the belief that Earth is the best planet in this solar system, works to protect and restore the natural world. Working with partners around the globe, we are developing innovative solutions to ensure the planet remains a place we can – and want to – live on. Based in the United States, the organization is led by President and CEO Tom Taylor, under the direction of Chairman Jeff Bezos and Vice Chair Lauren Sánchez Bezos. To learn more, visit: bezosearthfund.org. 

About Andes Amazon Fund
Since 2014, Andes Amazon Fund (AAF) has worked with more than 50 local non-governmental organization (NGO) partners to conserve the biodiversity, ecosystems, and environmental integrity of the greater Andes and Amazon regions of South America. AAF supports the creation and expansion of protected and conserved areas and the legal recognition of Indigenous lands with an integrated approach where nature and local communities can flourish. AAF also seeks to ensure effective management systems are in place for the newly designated areas and to identify longer-term financing options for their protection. To date, AAF has supported the creation of new conservation areas spanning more than 55.9 million acres (22.6 million hectares) in over 270 sites in Peru, Ecuador, Brazil, Bolivia, and Colombia. Once these areas are established, AAF provides start-up management funding as well as technical assistance as they seek public and private financing mechanisms to ensure the continued protection of these areas while benefiting local communities. Learn more at andesamazonfund.org and follow AAF’s work on social media here: LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook.

About Nia Tero
Nia Tero is a leading international organization whose sole focus is on advancing Indigenous Peoples' guardianship of ancestral lands, waters, and the ocean. We provide direct support to Indigenous Peoples' guardianship and elevate the role and influence of Indigenous Peoples as essential to ensuring planetary health and habitability. Learn more at: www.niatero.org 

About Rainforest Trust
Since 1988, Rainforest Trust has been working with partners to safeguard imperiled tropical habitats and threatened species by helping to establish protected and conserved areas in partnership with Indigenous and local organizations and communities. To date, Rainforest Trust has helped protect more than 70 million acres of vital habitat across Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region. Rainforest Trust is a nonprofit organization that relies upon the generous support of the public to successfully implement its important conservation action. The organization is proud of earning a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator. Learn more about the work of Rainforest Trust by visiting RainforestTrust.org, X (Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn. 
About Campaign for Nature
Campaign for Nature (CfN) was founded in 2018 as a global campaign to secure support for the “30x30” goal — a global agreement to protect 30% of the world’s land and sea by 2030. Following its successful adoption at the CBD COP15, CfN now focuses on implementation of the 30x30 target, advocating for the respect for Indigenous rights and contributions to biodiversity, and ensuring that countries keep their nature finance promise in the Global Biodiversity Framework — particularly the target for developed countries to provide at least $20 billion per year in nature finance to the developing world by 2025. SPACES, a program of Campaign for Nature, is providing technical support to the Government of Guyana to design their 30x30 plan. www.campaignfornature.org

Brynn Garner
Rainforest Trust
1-910-617-5370
brynn.garner@rainforesttrust.org