Wake Forest University has received the largest grant in its history to fund an international center in Peru aimed at scientific research and environmental sustainability.
The $10 million grant will establish the Amazon Center for Environmental Research and Sustainability or ACERS. It will be located in the province of Madre de Dios in Peru.
The region is known for its biodiversity, but it's also the site of significant deforestation and other environmental problems. Many locals suffer from high levels of mercury, a byproduct of illegal gold mining.
In a statement, Wake Forest conservation biologist Miles Silman says the center, "is about making sure that the local people and institutions in one of Earth's last best places have the scientific, technical and entrepreneurial capacity to make sustainable decisions on issues from development to public health to governance."
The project represents an alliance of U.S. and Peruvian institutes.