The Sierra Madre Alliance advises, supports, and collaborates with a number of Mexican nongovernmental organizations and indigenous communities to preserve the biological and cultural heritage of Mexico's northern Sierra Madre Occidental.
Integrated programs strive for a balance between conservation and the needs of local residents.
At stake are the last one percent of virgin forests, critical wildlife corridors to the United States, endangered species such as Thick-billed parrot, and some of the most traditional aboriginal communities in North America. There is no place else like Pino Gordo according to wildlife biologists familiar with the Sierra Tarahumara. 103 Tarahumara families were stripped of their land rights by a corrupt faction from a neighboring community. SMA is advising traditional leaders to on defense of these forests from illegal logging and restoring the land to its traditional owners. Sierra Tabaco SMA is negotiating a conservation buyout of the largest roadless area in the Sierra Madre, which contains spectacular old growth forests, riparian areas, Paquime cultural ruins, and abundant wildlife including bald eagle, black bear, and wild turkey.