Science & Technology
Regional leaders get together in effort to protect the Amazon
Regional leaders came together virtually on Friday to strengthen their efforts to protect the world’s largest rainforest, the Amazon.
Colombia’s President Ivan Duque hosted the third summit of the Leticia Pact, a regional deal that boosts coordination and satellite monitoring between the seven Amazonian countries.
Speaking from the jungle city of Leticia in southern Colombia, Duque told participants that Colombia will do its bit by reducing emissions by 51% by 2030.
Britain’s Minister of State for Pacific and the Environment Zac Goldsmith was also in attendance, with Scotland due to host COP26 global talks this year.
At the summit, the President of the Inter-American Development Bank announced a green fund to financially support green initiatives in the Amazon.
Forest fires in the Brazilian Amazon have surged in recent years, according to government data, destroying vast swathes of a vital bulwark against global climate change.
Some 60% of the forest is located in Brazil. The Amazon is also home to around 1 million people who are members of 500 indigenous groups.