Save the Rainforests, Save the Earth
By Jasmine Clark, Live Well Enhance You Contributing Writer
Do you like spending time in nature? Does being in nature give you a calm, serene feeling?
There’s a reason for that. We are one with nature, and nature is meant to be celebrated – especially rainforests. Even if you’re nowhere near a rainforest, spending time in nature helps you remember that nature as a whole is beautiful and interconnected.
World Rainforest Day, which is June 22nd, celebrates rainforests and shines a spotlight on the threats they face. We need rainforests for a variety of different reasons, and we can all do something to help protect them.
How rainforests benefit the world
A rainforest is a forest that gets high amounts of rain, and this abundant rainfall creates a home for an abundance of plants and animals. The Amazon is the largest tropical rainforest in the world and is the most talked about, but there are more rainforests that are lesser known but still sizeable. The Congo rainforest in Africa and the Australasian rainforest in New Guinea and Australia are two examples.
Rainforests give the world many important benefits. They’re sometimes called earth’s “lungs” or “air conditioners” because of their ability to absorb large amounts of greenhouse gases that would have increased the planet’s temperature. About 20% of all photosynthesis that occurs on land happens in rainforests, meaning rainforests play a major role in removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Because of this, rainforests are vital in the fight against climate change.
Biodiversity is another gift rainforests give to the world. About 50% of terrestrial diversity is found in rainforests, making rainforests an essential, fundamental part of the biological world. It’s scary to think of how many species of plants and animals we’d lose if rainforests disappeared!
Rainforests are important not just for biodiversity, but human diversity as well. One great example of this is the Amazon, which is home to 350 indigenous and ethnic groups. People who have lived in rainforests for generations understand rainforests on a deep level. They know how to take care of the rainforest and use its natural resources in a responsible way. Protecting rainforests protects people who live there.
Finally, rainforests remind us of the beauty of nature. Anyone lucky enough to experience seeing a rainforest in person has felt this firsthand. Rainforests are stunning collections of seemingly endless kinds of animal and plant life. These incredible natural habitats are worth keeping around.
So why are they being destroyed?
The problem of rainforest destruction
Rainforests are being destroyed through deforestation and forest degradation. Deforestation is the process of completely getting rid of a forest so that something else can be put on the land. Forest degradation is when a forest is damaged, loses its quality, and can’t quite function the way it should. Both things destroy forests, but degradation destroys it more slowly.
When rainforest land is destroyed, animals, the environment, and human beings are negatively affected. So what’s causing this? Illegal logging is a problem, and wildfires are another concern. But irresponsible, unsustainable agriculture is the main culprit. The World Wildlife Fund makes a sad point: “Once a forest is lost to agriculture, it is usually gone forever—along with many of the plants and animals that once lived there.”
Ways to help save the rainforests
Buy Rainforest Alliance-certified products - The Rainforest Alliance puts its certification seal on products that have been sourced in an environmentally friendly and socially conscious way. Products that are Rainforest Alliance certified are marked with a seal that looks like a circle with a frog inside.
Stop food waste - Cutting down on food waste (and waste of other products in general) helps rainforests. Food production involves the use of natural resources, so when food is wasted, those natural resources are being wasted too. It benefits rainforests when we waste less food and other products.
Donate to the Rainforest Partnership - The Rainforest Partnership is working to preserve rainforests through specific projects, such as this project focusing on sustainable land cultivation for indigenous women in Ecuador. You can visit the Rainforest Partnership’s main donation page here.
We can’t protect the health of our planet unless we protect rainforests. Rainforests are a precious gift that should not be taken for granted! That’s why World Rainforest Day exists and reminds us to take care of this resource that takes care of people, animals, and the atmosphere.
Jasmine Clark is a freelance writer from North Carolina. She enjoys writing about topics such as stress relief and positive thinking. She likes to encourage others to find ways to calm down and relax. In her spare time, she loves to write fiction stories and watch TV and YouTube. You can find her on Instagram @cozysachi.