Globally acknowledged as primary guardians of tropical forests due to their harmonious coexistence with the environment, indigenous communities in Brazil have extended their efforts towards restoring depleted regions. In the Juruá Valley region, located in the westernmost reaches of the state of Acre near the Peruvian border, indigenous associations, producer cooperatives, and non-governmental organizations are collaboratively engaged in the Amazon Reforest Alliance project, initiated in 2021 on a non-profit basis. The project's core objective is to facilitate agroforestry plantations within traditional communities that have witnessed deforestation encroach upon portions of their territories.
This is the case of the Puyanawa indigenous land, situated in the municipality of Mâncio Lima, approximately 700 km from the capital, Rio Branco. Nestled on the right bank of the Moa River, this territory spans a total area of 24,500 hectares, accommodating a population of around 750 individuals across two villages. About 5.8 percent of the territory has lost the original Amazon rainforest cover, a segment that was previously deforested by farmers who exploited the region in the past prior to its official demarcation. This accounts for roughly 1,500 hectares of land.
In the early 1900s, this area in the western part of present-day Acre fell victim to invasion by rubber-tapper colonizers. The region was subjected to the vigorous exploitation of the rubber cycle, which led to the dispossession of ancestral lands from the indigenous communities. Consequently, these original inhabitants were coerced into laboring for latex extraction over the course of several decades.
The demarcation of the territory only occurred in 2001. Leading the efforts is the Amazon Reforest Alliance project, spearheaded by Puwe Puyanawa. Towards the end of July, he hosted a group of digital influencers participating in the Creator Academy project, showcasing the ongoing work aimed at restoring the biome.
"The idea is for us to demonstrate to the community our capabilities in revitalizing degraded areas, transforming this place into a paradise abundant with fruits, medicinal plants, and valuable hardwoods. This approach emphasizes our ancestral commitment to nurturing the forest," Puyanawa stated.
The endeavor enjoys backing from experts at the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa), the state government, and the SOS Amazônia organization. As outlined by the project, fostering, esteeming, and fortifying a network of traditional communities committed to agroforestry-based reforestation is an investment in the planet's future.
"This isn't just about trees that will bear fruit and thrive in years to come. It's also about the pressing need for reforestation due to the alarming rate at which the Amazon is being depleted," emphasizes a segment from the program's official page.
As stated in reports from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), an international network of climate scientists, addressing the restoration of degraded areas should be prioritized due to high deforestation rates. The UN has designated the period from 2021 onward as the Decade of Forest Restoration, underscoring the critical need for global reforestation efforts.