Paul Rosolie

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Rosolie dropped out of high school during his sophomore year and chose to pursue his education at college.^[1] His long-standing interest in rainforests led him to an Amazon research station in Peru's Madre de Dios at the age of 18^[2] in 2005.^[3] That year, he also traveled to the Atlantic Forest through a study abroad program with Columbia University.^[1]

In 2007, Rosolie helped create Tamandua Expeditions (with Juan Julio Durand), an ecotourism company that offers trips to the Las Piedras Biodiversity Station on the Las Piedras River. Money raised from that endeavor is used to protect a patch of untouched forest.^[2]

He earned his undergraduate degree in environmental studies from Ramapo College in New Jersey in 2010. While studying, he frequently flew back to Peru during breaks, and worked with Tamandua Expeditions.^[1]

In 2013, Rosolie published a short film on YouTube that showed footage of dozens of species of wild animals in the Madre de Dios forests captured by various camera traps.^[4] Titled An Unseen World, it won the short film contest at the 2013 United Nations Forum on Forests.^[5]

Rosolie also spent time in India researching tiger conservation.^[6]

In March 2014,^[7] his first book, Mother of God: An Extraordinary Journey into the Uncharted Tributaries of the Western Amazon, was published by HarperCollins. It detailed his life, experiences, and conservation efforts in the Amazon.^[3]

In December 2014, he was the host of the Discovery Channel nature documentary special Eaten Alive. During the program, Rosolie was purportedly going to be swallowed alive by a green anaconda while wearing a custom protective suit;^[8] while the anaconda did coil around Rosolie, he was never actually swallowed.^[9] The show received criticism from viewers and animal rights organizations,^[10] but Rosolie maintained that he intended to raise money and bring broader public attention to the deforestation, gold mining, and hunting that threaten the anaconda's habitat. He also said he was unaware that the Discovery Channel would cut a majority of the conservation-related content from the show.^[11]

In 2015, Rosolie started spending more time on conservation efforts in India.^[12] In 2017, he studied the migration habits of tigers and elephants in the forests of Wayanad.^[13] As of 2018, he spends four months of the year in south India, and splits the remainder of his time in Peru and New York City.^[14]

In 2019, he released his second book, The Girl and the Tiger. This literary fiction novel is based on the true story of an Indian girl who contacted Rosolie after finding three abandoned tiger cubs.^[15]

In 2015, Rosolie co-founded Junglekeepers with Juan Julio Durand, a member of the Infierno Indigenous community, to protect forest land along the Las Piedras River watershed in the Madre de Dios region of Peru. The organization purchases land ahead of logging operations, and employs former loggers and gold miners as forest rangers.^[16] As of 2026, Junglekeepers has protected approximately 47,000 hectares (117,000 acres), with a stated goal of protecting 121,000 hectares (300,000 acres) and eventually establishing a national park.^[16]

In January 2026, Rosolie published his third book, Junglekeeper: What It Takes to Change the World, which appeared on the New York Times Best Sellers list.^[16][17] The watershed is home to nomadic Indigenous groups including the Nomolé, also referred to as the Mashco Piro, who have had limited contact with the outside world. Rosolie has described the ethical challenges of balancing the protection of these groups' autonomy with concerns about their welfare, and has engaged an anthropologist to advise on best practices.^[16][18][19]