JAKARTA — Indonesia has reclaimed more than 4 million hectares (9.9 million acres, about the size of Switzerland) of land nationwide that had been used for plantations, mining or other…
After years of uneven progress, deforestation in Indonesia is poised to accelerate, owing to widespread logging, expanding plantations and mining. In December, Indonesia’s forestry minister, Raja Juli Antoni, indicated the…
JAKARTA — Best known as the home of the world’s rarest great ape, the mountainous Batang Toru forest landscape on the island of Sumatra has become a test case for…
More than 145,000 African forest elephants roam the rainforests of Africa, according to a recent population assessment. Published in December by the African Elephant Specialist Group at the IUCN, the…
BANGKOK — 2025 saw global conservation plunged into chaos, with an estimated $500 million in funding from the United States government abruptly slashed after Donald Trump returned to office. The…
The story of the world’s tropical forests in 2025 was not one of dramatic reversal, but one shaped by accumulated pressure. In several regions, deforestation slowed. In others, loss continued…
As Belém's COP30 ended in compromise, political forces moved swiftly to accelerate destruction far from the global spotlight.
A recent scientific review of forest maps used to ensure compliance with the European Union’s Regulation on Deforestation-free products, known as the EUDR, suggests that most may over- or underestimate…
Restoration in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest is finding success on private lands, according to a newly published study. Researchers evaluated the Atlantic Forest Restoration Pact, a collaborative initiative launched in 2009…
JAKARTA — A major global forestry certification body is under scrutiny for endorsing one of Indonesia’s largest recent deforesters, raising concerns that consumers may be misled about the origins of…
Note: this piece was written prior to 2025, but was only published in December 2025. Jennifer Geerlings-Simons is currently president of Suriname and spoke to Mongabay in November 2025. Both…
BELÉM, Brazil — A new analysis warns that the world is overlooking a major source of future emissions hidden beneath tropical forests — and that Brazil’s newly launched Tropical Forest Forever…
Phaseout plan gained unexpected momentum at the summit, only to vanish from the final deal and unlock a new stage.
Operational rifts and budget constraints choked ambitious funding from rich nations for TFFF at Belém’s summit.
The first time Virgilio Viana saw the Amazon up close, he was a 16-year-old with a backpack, two school friends and very little sense of what he was walking into.…
A large forest in eastern Bolivia is on the verge of being sold to an international agriculture company, raising concerns that it might be razed to make room for new…
The Tapajós supported Indigenous people for millennia, but now vessels, pollution and waves may disrupt their lives.
Having studied the healing plants and peoples of tropical South America for well over four decades, I am often asked, “What is the conservation status of the Amazon Rainforest? Is…
We all know that “ignorance of the law is no excuse,” but in daily life, ignorance of the consequences of one’s actions is, indeed, an excuse that shields us from…
Lula wants to push actions forward in Belém, but his words clash with the latest environmental gestures in Brazil.
BELÉM, Brazil — Indonesia has pledged to recognize the rights of Indigenous and customary communities to 1.4 million hectares, about 3.5 million acres, of forests by 2029. It’s a move…
Malaysia’s Kinabatangan floodplain, home to orangutans, pygmy elephants and proboscis monkeys, has officially joined UNESCO’s global network of biosphere reserves, protected areas of high biological and cultural diversity. Covering 413,866…
PARAMARIBO, Suriname — With the U.N. Climate Change Conference coming up next week, Suriname finds itself at the center of a global debate about how to reduce carbon emissions and…
JAKARTA — Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has made bold pledges to achieve 100% renewable energy by 2035 and to phase out coal within 15 years, raising hopes that one of…
Heading into COP30, where tropical forests are set to be a central theme, it seemed worth attempting a thought experiment: to trace today’s trajectories a little further forward and imagine…
SÃO PAULO AND RIO DE JANEIRO — Despite government efforts to halt violence in the Amazon region where British journalist Dom Phillips and Indigenous expert Bruno Pereira were killed three…
PAKAYAKU TERRITORY, Ecuador — Deep in the heart of Ecuador's Amazon, where the Bobonaza River winds through ancient forests in Pastaza province, Sacha Gayas spreads out a hand-drawn map across her…
Illegal cattle ranching has torn through Nicaragua’s rainforests in recent years, supplying a growing international market for meat despite calls for better oversight of the industry. Now, the country is…
Intact forests struggle to escape climate degradation, exposing new impacts coming from increasingly warming temperatures.
Peru is on the verge of rolling back several longstanding protections for Indigenous people and their territories, critics warn. Several bills working their way through Congress would loosen restrictions for…
A rush to plant cacao in southeastern Liberia is destroying large tracts of rainforest. According to satellite data as well as interviews with local environmental advocates and government officials, the…
JAKARTA — A major palm oil producer linked through supplier-reported mill lists to global brands like General Mills and PepsiCo has escaped sanction for allegedly concealing a web of “shadow…
