South America

Home to the Amazon, the World’s Largest Forest

Photo credit: Mohsin Kazmi

What's at Stake

Spanning nine South American countries and 7 million sq km (2.7 million square miles), the Amazon is the world’s largest forest and is home to more than 120 indigenous groups and one in 10 known species. One-fifth of all freshwater on the planet originates in the Amazon Basin. Unparalleled in its biodiversity, the Amazon is also critical to global climate stability.

DEFORESTATION IN THE AMAZON

Humans have razed some 20 percent of the Amazon rainforest over the last 40 years alone, and an additional 20 percent is at risk of being destroyed—a potentially catastrophic loss that would cause this vital ecosystem to unravel. Read our response to the forest fire crisis in the Amazon.

Our Impact

The most important impact of our work in high-risk regions of the Amazon—self-determination—is not quantifiable. However, we continually gauge the success of our approach by measuring both ecosystem health and the economic and social well-being of our partner communities.

A sustainable, thriving forest economy

USD $31 million

in Brazil nuts exported from Madre de Dios, Peru

After working with the Rainforest Alliance for four years, communities in the Madre de Dios region of the Peruvian Amazon exported more than 4,000 metric tons of shelled Brazil nuts, representing a value of nearly US $31 million. Read the study

Our reach in South America

18 million acres

under sustainable management in South America

We’re working with forest communities, farmers, governments, and companies to conserve the Amazon Basin and protect its precious biodiversity. Together with our partners, we’ve brought 18 million acres (7.3 million hectares) under sustainable management.

This number includes Rainforest Alliance Certified agricultural land and FSC certified forest land, including land certified by our Brazilian partner, Imaflora. Data accurate as of March 21, 2018.

Our Work

Stopping deforestation in the Amazon requires bold, multi-faceted strategies that center indigenous forest communities and support their self-determination. This approach characterizes our work in the Amazon, where we work with a wide range of communities and partners to cultivate a sustainable forest economy.

Alyssa Killingsworth will apply her background in interdisciplinary environmental research and forest restoration to examine the effectiveness of Polylepis restoration efforts in the upper Andes in Ecuador. ... Continue Reading

Learn More

All resources for South America

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Case Study

Origin Performance & Risk Report: Colombia

The Rainforest Alliance and partners have worked in coffee for nearly four decades. While there are still challenges in the sector, we’ve also seen great improvements. In Colombia, the vast majority... View more


Available in: English

Case Study

Origin Performance & Risk Report: Brazil

The Rainforest Alliance and partners have worked in coffee for nearly four decades. While there are still challenges in the sector, we’ve also seen great improvements. In Brazil, many farms are large... View more


Available in: English

Article

Thriving Communities, Healthy Landscapes

We're helping more than two million farmers embrace more sustainable growing practices that can help build resilience to climate change and boost yields.

Article

Rainforest Alliance Certified Cocoa

We work with almost one million cocoa farmers to build thriving livelihoods and climate resilience through certification and training.