The Editor

The Serra do Mar coastal forests ecoregion covers a 1000-km long by 100-km wide strip along the Atlantic coast of southeastern Brazil. The ecoregion represents the largest continuous block of montane Atlantic forest and a remarkable center of endemism in South America.

Recoleta is a downtown residential neighborhood in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is an area of great historical and architectural interest due to its Beaux-Arts architecture as well as the distinguished La Recoleta Cemetery, one of the most unusual cemeteries in the world.

Huerquehue National Park is located in the La Araucanía region of south-central Chile. Situated in the foothills of the Andes, it is characterized by its lush, mountainous relief. Popular with hikers, its hills and streams enclose numerous lakes and lagoons with crystalline waters.

The Saint-Martin National Nature Reserve protects the environment of the northeastern coast, which provides habitat to many species. The reserve comprises rocky coasts, cliffs and beaches while the offshore area is composed of marine flowering plants and many coral formations.

Llanganates National Park is a protected area of Ecuador, known for its cloud forests, páramos, lagoons and vast biodiversity. Located within the Andean páramo as well as the montane forests on the eastern flanks of the Andes, it is also famous for the "Treasure of the Llanganatis."

La Paz is the administrative capital and seat of government of Bolivia. The city is set in a canyon created by the Choqueyapu River, a bowl-like depression surrounded by the mountains of the Altiplano. Lying about 4,000 m above sea level, La Paz is the world’s highest national capital.

The Maya Mountains are a range of hills in west-central Belize that take their name from the Maya people who built great centers in the region. The Cockscomb Range is a spur of the Maya Mountains and includes Victoria Peak, a national monument of Belize.

The Sacred Valley of the Incas, also known as the Urubamba Valley, is located within the Peruvian Andes in the present-day Peruvian region of Cusco. The town of Urubamba is located near a number of significant ruins of the Inca Empire including Machu Picchu.

There were as many as 80 simple churches built on Chile's high-altitude Altiplano plateau. These "Churches of the Altiplano" were built by Spanish missionaries seeking to convert the local people of the area. Today, some 50 small adobe churches survive in the settlements along this passage.

The Maya region is the largest in Mesoamerica. The region is generally divided into three loosely defined zones within Guatemala, Belize and Mexico: the southern Maya highlands, the southern Maya lowlands and the northern Maya lowlands.