{"id":73667,"date":"2025-03-24T17:03:55","date_gmt":"2025-03-24T16:03:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/?p=73667"},"modified":"2025-09-10T15:54:28","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T13:54:28","slug":"10-reasons-why-we-need-to-act-for-the-amazon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/story\/73667\/10-reasons-why-we-need-to-act-for-the-amazon\/","title":{"rendered":"10 reasons why we need to act for the Amazon"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

At each moment of each day, the Amazon breathes, dances, and sings with an endless variety of plants and animals, many of those we humans have yet to understand. The Amazon is life-giving, irreplaceable and yet profoundly vulnerable. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n

The Amazon isn\u2019t just the world’s greatest rainforest. She has been home to her original people for tens of thousands of years, who have persisted through centuries of colonial incursions to protect their home.<\/p>\n\n

Here are 10 fascinating facts to inspire you to take action for the Amazon:<\/p>\n\n

1. The Amazon is the largest rainforest in the world<\/h3>\n\n

Spanning over nine countries in South America, the Amazon is the largest tropical forest on the planet, covering 6.7 million square kilometres. To put it in perspective, she is twice the size of India\u2014<\/strong>the largest country in South Asia. The biggest part, around 60%, is in Brazil. After the Amazon, the Congo Basin and Papua host the world’s largest remaining rainforests.<\/p>\n\n

\"Aerial
Tapaj\u00f3s river basin, next to Sawr\u00e9 Muybu indigenous land, is home to the Munduruku people, Par\u00e1 state, Brazil. The Brazilian government plans to build 43 dams in the region. The largest planned dam, S\u00e3o Luiz do Tapaj\u00f3s, will impact the life of indigenous peoples and riverside communities. Dams like these threaten the fragile biome of the Amazon, where rivers are fundamental to regeneration and distribution of plant species and the survival of local flora. Renewable energy, such as solar and wind, holds the key to Brazil\u2019s energy future.
\u00a9 Rog\u00e9rio Assis \/ Greenpeace<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

2. The Amazon is one of the most biodiverse ecosystems on Earth<\/h3>\n\n

The Amazon is home to approximately 10% of all known species of fauna and flora worldwide<\/a>.  From the beautiful hyacinth macaws to fearless jaguars and the amazing pink dolphins, this vibrant ecosystem is teeming with life. In some areas, a single hectare can contain more than 300 tree species, as many as all of Europe, making the Amazon one of the most botanically rich regions on Earth.<\/p>\n\n

Studies<\/a> show that the Amazon Basin harbours at least 2,406 species of fish, 427 amphibians, 371 reptiles, 1,300 birds, and 425 mammals. However, the vast majority of its biodiversity lies in her invertebrates, particularly insects, with over 2.5 million species currently known<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

\"Munduruku
Two Munduruku boys walk along a river while holding spears.\nThe Munduruku people have inhabited the Sawr\u00e9 Muybu in the heart of the Amazon, for generations. The Brazilian government plans to build a series of dams in the Tapajos River basin, which would severely threaten their way of life. The Munduruku demand the demarcation of their territory which would ensure protection from such projects. In addition to preserving their way of life, the demarcation of Sawr\u00e9 Muybu ensures the conservation of 178,000 hectares of Amazonian rainforest.<\/figcaption>
\u00a9 Anderson Barbosa \/ Greenpeace<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

3. There are approximately 3 million Indigenous Peoples living in the Amazon<\/h3>\n\n

The Amazon is home to a diverse group of Indigenous Peoples<\/a>. Over 390 Indigenous Peoples live in the region, along with approximately 137 isolated groups, who have chosen to remain uncontacted.<\/p>\n\n

In Brazil, about 51.2% of the country\u2019s Indigenous population resides in the Amazon. But the largest tropical forest in the world is also home to traditional communities that have lived in harmony with the forest for generations, such as Rubber Tappers, Ribeirinhos\u2014who inhabit the Amazon\u2019s riverbanks\u2014and Quilombolas, Afro-Brazilian communities descended from enslaved people..<\/p>\n\n

4. The Amazon is home to over 40 million people<\/h3>\n\n

The Amazon is not just a vast rainforest rich in biodiversity and home to Indigenous People\u2014it is also home to several cities. In Brazil, These include Manaus, an industrial hub with a population of 2.2 million, and Bel\u00e9m, which will host the United Nations Climate Conference (COP30) in November 2025. <\/p>\n\n

These people\u2019s lives are intrinsically connected to the forest. They depend on her for their food, fresh water, and to regulate the local climate. Smoke from the fires in the Amazon directly impacts the people living in the region, darkening the skies and causing respiratory problems to the population, especially children and elders.<\/p>\n\n

\"Scorched
Indigenous Territories in the Amazon are facing a devastating combination of extreme drought and forest fires, driven by the intensification of climate change and criminal activities from illegal mining and other exploitative actions. These events have severe impacts on the environment and local communities, especially in the Capoto-Jarina Indigenous Territory, located in the Upper Xingu region of Mato Grosso. In addition to the seriousness of the situation, there is a lack of effective public policies to mitigate and respond to these phenomena, leaving vulnerable populations even more exposed to the effects of the climate crisis.
\u00a9 Marizilda Cruppe \/ Greenpeace<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

5. The Amazon is vital for the global climate<\/h3>\n\n

The Amazon is estimated to store about 123 billion tons of carbon, both above and below ground<\/a>, making her one of Earth\u2019s most crucial \u201ccarbon reserves\u201d, vital in the fight against the climate crisis.  However, studies show<\/a> that fire- and deforestation-affected areas of the Amazon are now releasing more CO\u2082 into the atmosphere than they absorb. This poses a major threat to the global climate. Protecting the Amazon means protecting the future of everyone.<\/p>\n\n

6. Fires in the Amazon are not natural<\/h3>\n\n

Unlike wildfires in California and the Mediterranean, for instance, and other parts of the world, fires in the Amazon are not natural. In the Amazon biome, fire is used in the deforestation process to clear the land for agriculture and pasture. The use of fire in the Amazon is often illegal, and so is deforestation. This practice has a major impact on the local biodiversity, the health of the populations living in the region, and to the global climate, as the fires release vast amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. <\/p>\n\n

\"Fire
Cattle in a ranching area, next to a recently deforested and burnt area, in Candeias do Jamari, Rond\u00f4nia state.\nThe Amazon is still covered in smoke and torn by criminal and unrestrained destruction, according to overflights produced by the Amazon in Flames Alliance, organized by Amazon Watch, Greenpeace Brazil and the Brazilian Climate Observatory. The expedition took place between September 13th and 17th, in the cities of Porto Velho (Rond\u00f4nia state) and L\u00e1brea (southern Amazonas state).<\/figcaption>
\u00a9 Victor Moriyama \/ Amaz\u00f4nia em Chamas<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

7. Cattle ranching is the leading cause of deforestation in the Amazon<\/h3>\n\n

The expansion of agribusiness in the Amazon is putting more and more pressure on the forest. According to one study<\/a>, 90% of the deforested areas in the Brazilian Amazon are turned into pasture to produce meat and dairy. This means the food we eat may be linked to deforestation in the Amazon. We must urge our governments to stop buying from forest destroyers and ensure supply chains are free from  deforestation, and demand stronger protections for the Amazon<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

8. Illegal gold mining is a major threat to Indigenous Peoples<\/h3>\n\n

Illegal gold mining in Indigenous Lands in Brazil surged by 265% in just five years, between 2018 and 2022. The activity poses a severe threat to the health and the lives of Indigenous People, destroying rivers<\/a>, contaminating communities with mercury<\/a>, and bringing violence and death to their territories. <\/p>\n\n

But illegal gold mining doesn\u2019t impact just the forest and Indigenous People. A recent study showed<\/a> that mercury-contaminated fish are being sold in markets in major Amazonian cities, putting the health of millions at risk. <\/p>\n\n

\"Illegal
Demarcated in 1985, the Sarar\u00e9 Indigenous Land remains under siege by thousands of miners who are playing a game of cat and mouse with the security and environmental protection forces. Home to the Nambikwara people, the 67,000-hectare territory has been systematically dismantled by the action of hundreds of hydraulic excavators that, day and night, deepen the drama of a people who are held hostage in their own home.\n\nVery close to the seven villages that are home to a population of 250 people, and spread across almost half of the territory, mining continues to expand and make the Nambikwara way of life unviable, ignoring the right of this population to live according to their customs and traditions.<\/figcaption>
\u00a9 Fabio Bispo \/ Greenpeace<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

9. The Amazon is close to a point of no return<\/h3>\n\n

About 17% of the Amazon<\/a> has already been deforested, and scientists warn we are getting dangerously close to a \u2018point of no return\u2019. According to a study<\/a>, if we lose between 20% and 25% of the Amazon, the forest might lose its ability to generate its own moisture, leading to reduced rainfall, higher temperatures, and a self-reinforcing cycle of drying and degradation. <\/p>\n\n

As a result, vast areas of the forest could turn into a drier, savanna-like ecosystem, unable to sustain her rich biodiversity. This could have catastrophic consequences for the global climate, local communities, and the planet’s ecological balance.<\/p>\n\n

10. The most important Climate Conference in the world is happening in the Amazon this year<\/h3>\n\n

COP30, the United Nations Climate Conference, will take place in Bel\u00e9m, the second largest city in the Amazon region, in November 2025. During the conference, representatives from countries all over the world will meet to discuss measures to protect the climate. Across the globe, we are already witnessing and feeling the impacts of the climate crisis. This is our chance to demand our political leaders move beyond words to urgent action. They must stop granting permission and public funds to Earth-destroying industries. Instead, our leaders must respect, pursue, and support real solutions that already exist\u2014solutions that put the forest and her people at the heart of the response. Indigenous guardians of the forest hold true authority, and they must be respected and heard. The moment is now.<\/p>\n\n

Protecting the Amazon isn\u2019t just about the forest. It\u2019s about respecting the basis of a balanced relationship with Nature and a path to a safe and healthy planet for all of us.<\/p>\n\n

We are the turning point! <\/h3>\n\n

Join the movement and sign the petition to demand respect for the Amazon.<\/a><\/p>\n\n

<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n \t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\tRespect the Amazon\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Ask political leaders to act on their promises to stop Amazon destruction.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t \n Join the movement\n <\/a>\n \t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/section>\n\t\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Amazon rainforest is vital for the lives of millions of people and for the protection of biodiversity and the climate. And that\u2019s why we need a global movement to protect it from greedy industries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":73669,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_planet4_optimize_post_is_variant":false,"_planet4_optimize_experiment_name":"","_planet4_optimize_variant_name":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"p4_og_title":"","p4_og_description":"","p4_og_image":"","p4_og_image_id":"","p4_seo_canonical_url":"","p4_campaign_name":"Amazon","p4_local_project":"Respect the Amazon","p4_basket_name":"not set","p4_department":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70],"tags":[84,149],"p4-page-type":[59],"class_list":["post-73667","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nature","tag-forests","tag-amazon","p4-page-type-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73667","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73667"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73667\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":73680,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73667\/revisions\/73680"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73669"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73667"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73667"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73667"},{"taxonomy":"p4-page-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/p4-page-type?post=73667"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}