A major initiative has been announced that will seek to reclaim 30,000 hectares of degraded area within the Brazilian Amazon over the next six years, making it the largest restoration project ever seen in the region.

The project aims to see an estimated 73 million trees planted by 2023. CC BY 2.0 Image by Neil Palmer (CIAT)

The project sees Rock in Rio’s social project Amazonia Live joining forces with the Amazon Sustainable Landscapes Programme to plant an estimated 73 million trees by 2023, with the Brazilian Ministry of Environment, the Global Environment Facility, the World Bank and the Brazilian Fund for Biodiversity also aiding in the ambitious, large-scale campaign. Three million trees covering 1200 hectares of the area will be the direct result of an initial contribution from Rock in Rio and Ci-Brasil, as well as donations from the general public and support from festival sponsors.

The project will see a range of different methods being applied, such as seeding of selected species that are native to the rainforest, the enrichment of existing secondary forests, nurturing and fostering natural regeneration and when necessary, direct planting of native species. The selected areas that will be given priority for the project are the southern regions in the state of Amazonas, including Rondônia, Acre, and Pará.

The efforts will be made in the Amazonas state, including Rondônia, Acre, and Pará. CC BY 2.0 Image by Neil Palmer (CIAT)

Started in 2016, Amazonia Live was created by the Rock in Rio Festival with an aim to plant one million trees in the Amazon and to publicise the importance of conservationism and preservation. Following a partnership with CI-Brasil, the initial campaign resulted in two million trees being planted at the headwaters of the Xingu River, and further investment from the Amazon Protected Areas Program helped the project acquire one million seedlings of natural species to be added in the state of Amazonas.

The campaign sees a number of institutions, organisations and companies coming together in an effort to restore 30,000 hectares of land. Image by Neil Palmer (CIAT)

“For the first time we are adopting a single cause worldwide that will be promoted in all the countries where Rock in Rio is present and will extend through several editions of the event. With this action, we will attract the attention of the whole world to an urgent problem and show that it is possible, especially, to plant hope. We started with one million trees; today we want 73 million,” said Roberto Medina, president of Rock in Rio.