Brazil will host the Amazon summit in the historic city of Belem, near the mouth of the Amazon River, on Aug. 8 and 9. The event aims to bring together policymakers and representatives from civil society to discuss how to protect the world’s largest rainforest and address climate change, as well as to improve security in a region plagued by organized crime.
The Amazon covers about 40% of South America and is home to more than 30 million people, including hundreds of indigenous groups. It also holds about 10% of the world’s biodiversity and plays a vital role in regulating the global climate by absorbing carbon dioxide and producing oxygen.
However, the Amazon is facing multiple threats from illegal logging, mining, farming, ranching, and infrastructure projects that have accelerated deforestation and forest degradation.