One Earth Conservation (OEC) has developed a replicable model for successful parrot conservation projects in the Americas by working in places that receive little attention and where parrots are threatened. OEC works in the field with local, marginalized, and mostly Indigenous people to create local Parrot Conservation Corps (PCC) consisting of conservationists who learn to conduct sustainable conservation projects as OEC supports them with training, funds, guidance, and solidarity.
For the past three years, OEC has also been developing a novel method to start new projects globally by offering year-long online PCC trainings, in English and Spanish, to teach its conservation methods and create mini teams to sprout new projects. OEC encourages participants by offering them stipends for completing the course and small grants for their projects.
The 2022-23 online Spanish language PCC resulted in 20 graduates from Argentina, Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Honduras and the completion of 10 mini-projects. The 20203-24 Bilingual online PCC currently includes more than 30 participants from Cameroon, Italy, Kenya, Switzerland, the U.S., and several Latin American countries.
A Mini-Project Example
An example of a project organized by a 2022-23 PCC participant is a parrot count completed in Argentina. This project, organized by Daiana Lera, Ph.D., focused on the burrowing parrot, also called the Patagonian conure, (Cyanoliseus patagonus), which is a neotropical parrot distributed mainly in Argentina and Chile and sporadically observed in Uruguay.
This a threatened species whose populations have decreased due to habitat loss and degradation, capture for the pet trade, and historical persecution because some consider it an agricultural pest. Daiana’s mini project included two burrowing parrot population counts conducted in December 2022 and two in February 2023, in a communal roost in the city of Bahía Blanca, in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. This roosting area regularly attracts several hundred to thousands of individuals of this species every night, and the location and accessibility of this site allow long-term estimates of their population size to be developed.
After she finished the 12-month course, Daiana provided this feedback to OEC:
“The PCC was a beautiful experience, different from the courses I used to take. It provided me with important academic information but I greatly value the contribution on an emotional and spiritual level, knowledge and tools that I consider so important to lead a healthy life that is also reflected in the projects we carry out. These issues are generally not taken into account in training. They managed to integrate everything in perfect harmony.”
What PCC participants all share, whether in OEC’s field projects or our online course, are a passionate commitment to protecting parrots and their environment, an eagerness to learn new skills and knowledge to achieve success with their work, and the strength to deal with both the large and small challenges they may face. These activities can be replicated in the future by reaching out to more communities, co-organizing new in-person and online PCC cohorts, and training other NGOs on our process.”
OEC was recognized for its Parrot Conservation Corps program by the 2023 Solution Search contest offered by the nonprofit organization Rare, in the Unsustainable Trade Category. This competition unearths existing and successful solutions that are reducing the illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade by changing people’s behaviors. In recognition of its work, OEC was awarded the 2023 Judge’s Choice award and a $20,000 prize to support the 2023-24 PCC!
The Parrot Conservation Corps is spreading the word globally about the wildlife trade in parrots – and the necessary knowledge and passion – to people who want to do their part to protect these endangered birds. You can learn more about this program by visiting https://www.oneearthconservation.org/pcc.