‘Nature is in need of money’ – Leaders of rainforest nations join talks on saving Amazon

Indigenous people hold signs that read in Portuguese ‘We have always been here’ and ‘Our future is not for sale’ during a march in Belem. Photo: AP

Fabiano Masisonnave

Representatives of rainforest nations in Africa and south-east Asia joined a summit of Amazon countries in Brazil yesterday to begin charting a common course for preservation of the ecologically diverse regions that are crucial in countering climate change.

On Tuesday, leaders and ministers from eight Amazonian nations signed a declaration that laid out plans to drive economic development in their countries while preventing the Amazon’s demise “from reaching a point of no return”.