"Save the rainforest" is an environmental slogan as old as time — but Tasso Azevedo catches us up on how the fight is actually going these days. Spurred by the jaw-dropping losses of the 1990s, new laws (and transparent data) are helping slow the rate of deforestation in Brazil. Is it enough? Not yet. He has five ideas about what we should do next. And he asks if the lessons learned in Brazil could be applied to an even bigger problem: global climate change.

Hopeful lessons from the battle to save rainforests

Brazil once lost forests at a rate equal to half of Costa Rica every year, threatening the planet’s largest climate regulator. By deploying real-time satellite monitoring, cutting illegal finance, and creating vast protected areas, the country drove down deforestation by 75 percent within a decade. This achievement avoided three billion tons of CO2 emissions and proved a nation can grow its economy while saving its forests. Yet, the fight is not over, and the lessons learned point to a roadmap for tackling even bigger global climate challenges.

Brazil’s Rainforest Comeback Reveals The Path To Climate Progress

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ecology

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environment

social change

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TED Stage Talk

Tasso Azevedo: Hopeful lessons from the battle to save rainforests