Save the Amazon Rainforest
- Gowri Rayannavar
- May 26
- 2 min read
Brazil is home to the Amazon rainforest and is widely known to be the largest forest in the world, spanning over nine countries in South America. This rainforest is named the “ lungs of the world,” producing 20% of the Earth's oxygen and playing a crucial role in regulating the planet's climate, being the largest carbon sink. Not only is it home to a vast array of biodiversity, including animals and plants that cannot be found anywhere else, but it's also the home of many indigenous tribes that have shared their culture for centuries. So now, think, why would we ever try to destroy a crucial part of our world? Unfortunately, deforestation has already caused irreparable damage.
The deforestation of the Amazon rainforest is mainly caused by four factors: agriculture, mining, logging, and other human activities. The negative impacts have caused severe loss of forest land in Brazil’s Amazon and led to habitat loss for millions of species, including already endangered animals like the jaguar and giant otter. However, this not only impacts the loss of biodiversity, but also contributes to the increasing climate instability. Being the largest carbon sink, less carbon is being absorbed and is released into the atmosphere as we lose more and more forest.
With the rising concern about the future of the Amazon rainforest, action has been taken in Brazil in hopes of preventing further damage due to deforestation. One movement that has recently been implemented is the partnership of The Good Growth Partnership program and WWF-Brazil, which are working on Deforestation Risk Management for the Central Bank of Brazil from June 28th to 03rd July. This program consists of training on concepts about deforestation risk management and provides practical references on how financial institutions are managing deforestation risk daily. This helps spread awareness about the threats that deforestation poses to the Amazon rainforest. Together with more of these programs and institutions, we can help educate and take one step closer to decreasing the rate of deforestation of the “ lungs of our world.”
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