Community-based monitoring has become a vital way of understanding environmental changes in remote regions of the Amazon. Historically, many environmental monitoring programs have been led by governments and academic institutions. However, community-based organizations are now actively engaging in monitoring initiatives focused on water quality, air quality, and wildlife, among others. To be successful, these initiatives should include local communities in the process of designing and implementing monitoring campaigns. Local participation should also help identify environmental issues, generate data and information, and guide the process of decision-making. Despite strong interests in environmental monitoring, many communities face challenges such as limited access to technology and limited expertise for data collection and interpretation. Therefore, a collaborative approach, involving technical, academic, and community stakeholders, can help overcome these limitations. For instance, a collaborative approach can integrate modern technologies with traditional and local knowledge. Here we share our experiences with community monitoring over the past decade in the Amazon. Many of these experiences involved partnerships with Indigenous communities to identify environmental concerns and engage NGOs and academic institutions to provide technical support. This co-production process at several sites led to the establishment of an environmental monitoring network that incorporated three key elements: (1) aligning monitoring efforts with community interests, (2) selecting appropriate technologies suited to local conditions, and (3) facilitating data interpretation and communication within the communities and broader stakeholders. We found that the need for sustained capacity building, financial support for training, and a continued, active role of academic institutions in bridging technical expertise with community needs are essential elements for success of community-based monitoring programs. Cooperation between Indigenous and local communities, NGOs, and academic institutions can result in more impactful and responsive environmental monitoring efforts tailored to local needs and favoring long-term environmental conservation and management.