It’s Adopt-A-School time!
Each year, CONAPAC donates new school supplies to every student, teacher, and school in our partner communities, and we invite volunteers to join us.
Many thanks to our Adopt-A-School donors who make it possible for us to purchase these school supplies! This year, we anticipate delivering approximately 3,000 packets of school supplies to students and teachers. Each packet includes pencils, pens, erasers, pencil sharpeners, rulers, colored pencils, markers, and other items tailored to the student’s age level. We also provide a selection of custom-made notebooks to feature regionally relevant environmental education. This year, the notebooks highlight endangered tree species, familiar fruit types, typical fish used for food, and information about the importance of bats in the forest. Additionally, we offer a custom-designed ABC coloring book with regional subjects and vocabulary for the youngest learners. The teacher packets contain teaching aids.
Schools will receive a set of supplies, including scissors, glue, markers, tape, and various types of paper and craft materials. Kindergartens will also get developmentally appropriate toys and puzzles. Primary and secondary schools will receive volleyballs and soccer balls. Currently, all of the student packets and supplies are being prepared and packaged in Iquitos. This process takes a team of 12 young people about two weeks to complete since it involves a lot of work!
Soon, we will load the cargo boat, and on Monday, March 24, we will kick off the delivery process. With four boats, each visiting two or three communities, it takes us six days to deliver supplies to all 49 CONAPAC partner communities. Volunteers assist us in organizing, distributing, and celebrating in each school. We also spend four days in one community working on a unique project. This year, we are building a school dining hall and playground equipment in the community of General Merino. During those four days, volunteers and Detroit Zoo education staff will lead environmental education activities with the kindergarten and primary schools.
None of this work would be possible without the support of our partners, the Detroit Zoological Society and Explorama Lodges. The Detroit Zoo provides us with administrative support, processes and manages donations from a worldwide donor base, coordinates volunteer recruitment, and plans environmental activities for students during Adopt-A-School. Explorama Lodges provides lodging, food, and transportation for all the volunteers and staff for both Adopt-A-School trips and the annual CONAPAC teacher workshop.
To learn more about this program, including our annual teacher workshop, please visit our website, conapac.org, and follow us on Facebook and Instagram. To support our work, click the donate link here or on our website. If you are interested in joining us for the 2026 Adopt-A-School supply deliveries, send an email of interest to amazontravel@dzs.org. Dates will be determined by the end of April.
Want to donate?
We have several long-time donors and partner organizations who work tirelessly for CONAPAC; with you, we can do so much for our communities.
Our work is only possible with the many other donations, big and small, that we receive throughout the year.
