Today I’d like to talk about a topic that is very important to me. It’s been a while since I’ve wanted to write this article. In fact, ever since our trip to the jungle, the thought of it has been haunting me.
Deforestation. To many of us, it’s a vague concept, a crime that should be denunciated, but that’s too far away to actually grasp the extent of it.
«Around 12 million hectares of forest in the world’s tropical regions were lost in 2018, equivalent to 30 football fields per minute.» (Matt Mc Grath, BBC) The facts are shocking, horrifying, but they rapidly disappear in the mass of information and bad news we absorb incessantly. It wasn’t any different for me; I was well aware of the problem, but it didn’t affect me personally.
That is, until the first day of our adventure in the Peruvian rainforest. We were walking through lush green jungle vegetation, when all of a sudden we came out into a clearing. I couldn’t believe my eyes. While before we could hardly see around the next bend, the view was now clear for miles and miles around. A few stray trees and bushes, apart from that only grass and burnt tree trunks. And cows. Lots of cows.
Juan explained to us that their neighbour had burnt and chopped down over 150 hectares of rainforest to raise cattle, robbing hundreds of other species of their natural habitat and making the soil barren and depleted. The few trees remaining, he said, were «árboles de castaña», brazil nut trees. It is illegal to cut them down, which is why they are spared. However, they don’t produce if they’re not surrounded by other trees…
Having seen the beauty of the rainforest, standing in the middle of this desolate, almost apocalyptic site left me at a loss. It made me angry and sad to think that someone could destroy such a magnificent and unique place for purely economic reasons.
The rainforest is the habitat of animals and humans alike – in Peru, there are still indigenous tribes living in «comunidades» in the jungle. It plays a significant role in sustaining biodiversity, regulating carbon dioxide levels and also influences regional and maybe even global water cycles. (Christina Nunez, National Geographic)
This is why the efforts and actions of organisations like Novalis, aiming to stem the deforestation and preserve the remaining rainforest, are so crucial and valuable. For example, they have purchased pieces of land surrounding their cattle-rancher neighbour, preventing him from expanding the deforested area. Juan and his team also interact and collaborate with the surrounding communities, working with them to protect the jungle whilst also upholding their cultural heritage.
Seeing these people dedicating their life to the conservation of this extraordinary region was inspiring and led me to think about what each one of us can do. A lot can be done just by informing oneself about the situation, then by informing friends and family (which is what I’m intending on doing with this text, just in case you hadn’t noticed ;D). This helps make more sustainable decisions, be it when buying meat or other products, managing paper usage or supporting political initiatives.
In sum, I won’t list all the possible measures, there are enough other sites doing exactly that. Just one last hint if you feel like doing something concrete and supporting an on-site organisation: while researching for this article, I happened to find out that Novalis has started a crowdfunding project to create green corridors around the clear-cut area. Click on the following link to support them: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/habitat-for-change#/
The rainforest and all its
inhabitants will thank you!