Guest Speakers

The Heard Natural Science Museum and Wildlife Center cordially invites you and your family to join us

as we welcome

Expert Naturalist and Special Guest Speaker:

Cliver Rioja Acosta from Iquitos, Peru

Thursday, Jan 28, 7PM

Free admission

rsvp

Join Cliver as we explore the Amazonian Basin through captivating stories and imagery. His talk entitled: “Living in the Amazon Basin Today: Stories and Slides,” will inspire our global perspective and captivate our senses. A passionate and dynamic expert naturalist, Cliver’s talk is aimed to foster a greater understanding of the Amazonian region and local communities while drawing linkage to our own environments and communities of North Texas.

The Amazon Basin is under severe threat, with political, economic and environmental interests colliding daily. Mr. Rioja’s talk will focus on what it means to live in the region today, he will offer captivating imagery and stories of his home of the Amazon Basin. Mr. Rioja lives in Iquitos, Peru and is employed by Explorama, the owner of several Amazon River lodges, where he works as a naturalist and river guide. Mr. Rioja’s work with renown scientists inclusive of experts from the JASON Project, Smithsonian, Earth Watch, and National Geographic in support of research and conservation of the Amazon forest has provided a rich mix of natural history experiences and knowledge.

In 1999, when the Jason Project chose rainforests as its habitat to explore, Bob Ballard and his team selected Iquitos, Peru as a natural location for exploration. Cliver, was part of a large team that assisted the Jason scientists, teachers, and students during the three week event, reaching out to millions of students worldwide. Before this event, Terry Erwin, the world renowned Smithsonian entomologis, concentrated his research in the region on behalf of his follow up work relating to his ground-breaking discoveries that estimated the number of insect species in the near tropics to be an order of magnitude higher than previously believed, not two or three million, but more likely thirty million or more.

In recent years, Cliver has also worked with Dr. Peter Raven, director of the Missouri Botanical Garden and Chair of the Committee for Research and Exploration for the National Geographic Society. He has acted as guide for Dr. Raven and his group as they explored the Amazon/Napo Region. His work with Dr. Margaret "Meg" Lowman - Rainforest Canopy Biologist and author of Life in the Treetops : Adventures of a Woman in Field Biology & It's a Jungle Up There : More Tales from the Treetops. For parents who have enjoyed the work of Lynne Cherry, author of the classic Great Kapok Tree, Cliver has supported her quest for rainforest research and understanding.

The region where Cliver works is a hot spot of biological diversity catering to the interest of the world’s top ornithologist in the observation and study of birding populations and we invite you to join us for this very special event to share in the beauty, awareness and understanding of the importance of Amazonian Biodiversity.

Special Thanks goes to LAN Airlines and Holbrook Travel, Inc., who have joined together to bring naturalist Cliver Rioja from the Peruvian Amazon to the US.

LAN is Latin America’s premier airline, operating one of the most modern fleets in the world and connecting Latin America with North America, Europe, and the South Pacific. The company recently completed its short haul fleet renovation process by acquiring new aircraft from the Airbus A320 family, enabling LAN to improve its efficiency and to significantly reduce its CO2 emissions.

Holbrook Travel, Inc is a specialty tour company based in Gainesville, Florida and operating since 1974. Focused on providing the best value in educational and natural history expeditions, Holbrook is proud to work with schools, universities, and nature travelers to create experiences that last a lifetime. Holbrook’s founders, Giovanna and Juan Holbrook, also established Selva Verde Lodge and Rainforest Reserve, protecting over 500 acres of old growth, tropical rain forest in Costa Rica.