Amazon rainforest inhabitants share plan to save their home

Inhabitants of the Amazon have created a comprehensive plan to prevent climate and ecological collapse, focusing on ending fossil fuel subsidies and securing Indigenous land rights.

Katie Surma reports for Inside Climate News.

In short:

The Pan-Amazon Social Forum (FOSPA) gathered Indigenous and local communities to discuss strategies to protect the Amazon rainforest.
Participants criticized international climate talks and emphasized the need for direct action and local knowledge.
The proposed plan includes ending fossil fuel subsidies, securing land rights and prioritizing biodiversity hotspots for conservation.

Key quote:

“We are being suffocated by large enterprises.”

— Vanuza Abacatal, leader of a Quilombola community in Para, Brazil.

Why this matters:

The Amazon rainforest plays a critical role in regulating the global climate, and study after study have shown that Indigenous communities with secure land tenure have the best conservation outcomes, even compared to national parks. However, the rainforest faces unprecedented threats from deforestation, illegal mining and oil extraction. Indigenous leaders argue that continuing to support fossil fuel industries through government subsidies only exacerbates these threats, accelerating the pace of ecological destruction and climate change.

insideclimatenews.org

Amazon rainforest inhabitants share plan to save their home

Disaster aid cuts raise fears of post-Katrina failures as hurricane risks grow

New Orleans children carry Hurricane Katrina’s trauma into adulthood

Local emergency alert systems often go unused, with deadly results

Democrats target Trump’s energy law as driver of rising electricity bills

Oil and gas firms press Carney to scale back climate rules as Canada weighs emissions plan update

U.S. tariffs hit Indian solar exports as domestic market faces pressure to absorb surplus

Koch-funded campaign ramps up fight against Vermont’s clean energy laws

Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals

One facility has emitted cancer-causing chemicals into waterways at levels up to 520% higher than legal limits.

Pennsylvania health advocates say Trump’s first 100 days in office have caused “100 harms” to local communities

“They're terrorizing these scientists because they want to keep them silent.”

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

"The reality is, we are not exposed to one chemical at a time.”

Two years into his term, has Gov. Shapiro kept his promises to regulate Pennsylvania’s fracking industry?

A new report assesses the administration’s progress and makes new recommendations

An open letter from EPA staff to the American public

“We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. We need to hold this administration accountable.”

New evidence links heavy metal pollution with wildfire retardants

“The chemical black box” that blankets wildfire-impacted areas is increasingly under scrutiny.