About OSARA


	Exploring the biocultural wonders
		of the Cape Horn Archipelago
	The Cape Horn Archipelago is a world-renowned pristine and remote ecosystem that hosts a unique biological and cultural diversity. In June 2005, it was incorporated into the world network of biosphere reserves by UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Program. As a result, many institutions have an interest in developing research and education programs in the area, while others wish to strengthen existing initiatives. Since 2001 there has been an increasing need to respond to this burgeoning array of projects in southern Chile’s sub-Antarctic archipelago. The result of this four year process to better coordinate these efforts has been the creation of the Omora Sub-Antarctic Research Alliance, a U.S.-based non-profit whose mission is to promote biocultural conservation by facilitating research and education with the understanding that social wellbeing and sustainable development are also part of long-term conservation goals in the islands south of the Beagle Channel.




	OSARA strives to be a leader in the efforts to understand, teach and protect the Cape Horn Archipelago. We believe that by coordinating the activities of the different institutions with interest in the region we can create a powerful consortium to achieve this goal. The long-term goals of OSARA are modeled on the extremely successful example of the Organization for Tropical Studies, which likewise is a joint venture of sixty-three organizations. In this context, we seek to develop the human and physical infrastructure necessary to carry out our mission with the help of a network of people, institutions and projects that together make-up the Omora Sub-Antarctic Research Alliance.