Every September 1st is celebrated as International Primate Day to raise awareness about the ecological crisis facing 217 primate species in Latin America. ^[1] Experts from Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru reported that a significant portion of Latin American primates are on the verge of extinction in the wild due to massive habitat destruction and illegal hunting. ^[2] Illegal mining operations in the Yungas of La Paz, Bolivia, are destroying the boundaries of the Senda Verde sanctuary, with a cooperative using heavy machinery to excavate up to 30 meters deep on 100 square meters of land. ^[3] In Bolivia, the spider monkey (Ateles chamek) was reclassified from Vulnerable to Endangered in the 2026 Red Book of Vertebrates of Bolivia due to a population decline of at least 50% over the last 45 years. ^[4] Daniela Quintero is a Colombian journalist and sociologist based in Bogotá who serves as investigations editor at Mongabay Latam, developing cross-border investigations into nature crimes and environmental issues across Latin America. ^[5] High gold prices have fueled illegal mining across the Amazon, and criminal groups have used Venezuela as a laundering route for illegally mined gold since Brazil tightened controls on the trade, according to a Mongabay investigation published in 2024. ^[6] Quintero reported for Mongabay on glass-eel fishing in the Dominican Republic and on the smuggling and laundering of illegally mined Amazonian gold through Venezuela. ^[7] Quintero said environmental stories are about power, inequality, corruption, Indigenous rights, organized crime and people trying to protect their territories, which keeps her interested in environmental journalism. ^[8]