Monthly deforestation, degradation, and wildfire scar data for the Brazilian Amazon

Deforestation figures can be frustrating to look at, but there are a number of success stories when it comes to protecting tropical forests that we can learn from, Crystal Davis, global program director at the World Resources Institute, says in a recent Mongabay video. “We know what works. We know how to do it,” Davis

Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. In a corner of the rainforest where Colombia meets Peru and Brazil, the hum of chainsaws and gunfire never quite dies. Yet, in the shadows of this long emergency, a subtler resistance endures. Its frontline is marked not

Indigenous communities in the Peruvian Amazon are working to revive populations of the aguaje palm tree, commercially valued for its fruits, by shifting to more sustainable harvesting practices, Mongabay’s Aimee Gabay reported in April. The reptilian-looking fruits of the aguaje palm tree (Mauritia flexuosa) are consumed raw or used as an ingredient in beverages, soap,

Hundreds of monkeys can now safely cross roads in Alta Floresta, a city in the southern Brazilian Amazon. Seven canopy bridges have reconnected rainforest fragments that were separated by urban roads. Camera traps have recorded more than 3,000 crossings by canopy-dwelling wildlife, an average of more than 12 a day, since October 2024, when the

- Latin American cartels once were masters of the drug trade, but spikes in prices led them into controlling a new venture.- Criminals also took advantage of poor control over the mining sector and used it to launder money, a report from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has found.- Drug trafficking groups may control the logistics and the equipment supply in gold mining sites or charge miners for the right to use a specific area.- In the Tapajós River Basin, in the Brazilian Amazon, gold mining is also closely connected with crimes like sexual abuse and human trafficking.

- A Brazilian state was set to close a massive $180 million carbon credit deal, but now faces an escalating legal battle, accused of violating national laws and Indigenous rights, potentially ruining the project.- Brazil’s Federal Prosecutor’s Office is seeking to nullify the 2024 contract, which sells 12 million carbon credits from Pará to companies like Amazon, Bayer, H&M Group and Walmart.- Indigenous and Quilombola leaders voice concerns that the program could restrict their access to their land and interaction with nature, undermining inherent rights and deep spiritual connection to the rainforest.- Widespread accusations over the failure of free, prior, and informed consent for the project highlight ongoing criticism of carbon credit initiatives in Brazil and globally, after scandals involving unapproved use of traditional territories and a loss of confidence in REDD+ projects.

- In November 2024, the Brazilian government launched an operation to oust illegal gold miners from the Munduruku Indigenous Territory in the Amazon Rainforest.- However, there was little government action to address health issues in the aftermath of the destruction wrought by gold mining, Indigenous leaders and experts say.- A wide range of diseases linked to mercury contamination and other environmental destruction derived from illegal gold mining spread in Munduruku lands, including diarrhea, itchiness, flu, fever, childhood paralysis and brain problems.- Munduruku leaders sent a letter to the federal government requiring actions to provide health assistance to their people, detailing a list of required actions, including measures to combat mercury contamination, malaria, food insecurity and lack of drinking water.

- Brazilian and Chinese authorities — including Presidents Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Xi Jinping — recently discussed a proposed railway that would connect Brazil’s Atlantic coast to Peru’s new Pacific-facing Chancay Port, cutting through the Amazon.- From Lucas do Rio Verde, a major agricultural hub in the state of Mato Grosso, the railway would be built from scratch, advancing into the Amazon’s Arc of Deforestation.- Planners intend to build the Amazonian section of the railway alongside existing highways, a strategy aimed at minimizing environmental impacts and streamlining the licensing process.- However, environmental activists warn that the Bioceanic Corridor, together with newly planned roads, waterways and ports, could accelerate deforestation and degradation in the rainforest.

Mongabay contributor Glòria Pallarès earned an honorable mention in the 2025 Trace Prize for Investigative Reporting, announced May 28, for her investigation into how Indigenous communities in Peru, Bolivia and Panama were misled into handing over their rights to millions of hectares of forest. The January 2024 investigation, “False claims of U.N. backing see Indigenous

- The European Union’s demand for electric vehicles may lead to the deforestation of 118,000 hectares (291,584 acres) in critical minerals-supplying countries, according to a new report.- Brazil, which accounts for large reserves of nickel, graphite, rare earths, lithium and niobium, would be one of the most affected countries.- Despite the mining project’s socioenvironmental impacts, the Brazilian federal government has backed companies with financing and political support.- Experts warn that the new minerals rush increases pressure on Indigenous communities already suffering from mining companies’ violations.