ARCAS Wildlife Rescue Center Guatemala

ARCAS is a Guatemalan NGO committed to preserving wildlife and its habitat. It was formed in 1989 by a group of Guatemalan citizens who became concerned as they saw their precious natural heritage – especially their wildlife – rapidly disappearing before their eyes. ARCAS was originally created for a very specific purpose: to build a rescue center in the northern Peten region to care for and rehabilitate wild animals confiscated from smugglers in the Maya Biosphere Reserve. Since the establishment of the rescue center, ARCAS has opened additional program areas on the Pacific coast of Guatemala and the altiplano, branching out into other very necessary activities including marine turtle conservation, protected areas management, environmental education, ecotourism, and reforestation.