Video: What is the Atlantic Forest, and how can we conserve it?

If someone were to ask you to name a forest in Brazil, chances are high you would name the Amazon Forest. But South America houses another huge forest that spans along the Atlantic coast from Brazil to Argentina and Paraguay: the Atlantic Forest. May 27^th we celebrate Atlantic Forest Day, where we raise awareness to deforestation and fragmentation of the Atlantic Forest. In a short video, Honours student Rebecca Hanke explains why it is so important to conserve the forest, and what makes it difficult to restore the forest.

Where the Atlantic Forest used to extend over more than 1.3 million square kilometres of land, now only 12% of its original size remains. Over 120 million people live in the area that the forest used to span, and along with its inhabitants, farmers, private companies, state governments, municipal government, federal government, NGOs, universities, research institutes are also involved in managing the forest. Most of these stakeholders want different things for and from the forest. How do you find a solution to forest conservation and restoration that works for everyone?

Hanke works on the Atlantic Forest Transition project along with René Verburg, Anna Duden, Reinier Boot, Pita Verweij (Utrecht University) and Alexandre Martensen (UFSCar Brazil), which is funded by a collaboration between NWO and FAPESP.