Did you know that deforestation today is responsible for as much greenhouse gas pollution as all the trucks and cars in the world combined? The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says that by stopping deforestation and restoring forests, we can reduce global carbon pollution by at least 25%.
And for the indigenous tribes who call the Amazon home, the destruction of the rainforest, and the plants and animals in them, is a profound cultural loss. Sadly, they find themselves in a no-win situation economically. Alternative sources of income are either high value but unsustainable — and often illegal, such as logging and gold mining — or they’re much more sustainable but really low value.
Your World Rainforest Day gift to EDF’s Summer Match can make FOUR TIMES the difference for the Amazon rainforest AND the people who call it home.
For nearly three decades, Steve Schwarztman, EDF’s senior director of tropical forest policy, has been working with the Kayapo tribe and other indigenous groups in the Brazilian rainforest to help to turn their living rainforests into a steady source of income.
One of the most important tools we have is Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+), an innovative approach developed in the United Nations and based on a concept originally formulated by EDF and partners. By creating a path to earn valuable carbon credits in exchange for protecting their homes from deforestation, we can make forests worth more alive than dead — eliminating the economic pressure to clear the forests for agriculture and other activities.
REDD+ is the best way to reduce carbon emissions from deforestation, contribute to sustainable livelihoods for indigenous peoples and conserve tropical biodiversity on a large scale. EDF scientists believe we can reduce 1 gigaton of emissions through REDD+ — a carbon benefit equivalent to making 80% of cars in the U.S. zero-emission vehicles!
The Kayapo made a sustainable living in the Amazon for centuries before European explorers set foot on Brazilian soil. The living rainforests provided food, shelter and medicine for generations upon generations — so they know better than anyone how much more valuable the forest is when we can leave it exactly as it is.
To preserve their ancestral home and traditional way of life, they need the rest of the world to recognize the value of living rainforests, too.
By making your Summer Match contribution today, you’ll unlock not $2, but $3 with every $1 you contribute to help defend their home from exploitation.
Wishing you a day as vibrant and full of life as the rainforests we fight for,
Emily Stevenson
Manager, Online Membership
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