Memories of Zamora Chinchipe by Matt Clark
01/16/2019
President Matt Clark shares his unforgettable experiences in Zamora Chinchipe Province, Ecuador.
Dozens of memories welled up when I heard shortly before New Year’s Day that Zamora Chinchipe Province had approved a 1.1-million-acre protected reserve. My family and I lived in southern Ecuador for three and a half years. In our time there, we came to know and love Zamora Chinchipe: its myriad waterfalls and stunning geology, the seemingly limitless variety of its plants and animals, and most of all, its vibrant, hospitable people.
Over the last two weeks, I’ve been looking through my photos and I’ve been hard-pressed to select just a few to share. They number in the thousands, and collectively they represent what makes Zamora Chinchipe special to me. I ultimately chose photos from a single day in March 2017 when my wife, Abby, our boys, Rowan and Quillan and I visited the Shuar village of Kiim for their annual festival celebrating the chonta palm fruit harvest.
Like Zamora Chinchipe, all of the places that Nature and Culture works have their unique stories. So many photos still to take, so many stories to learn and share. It’s one of the things I love best about my work with Nature and Culture.
Matt Clark, President and CEO
