How to help the Amazon rainforest

Aerial view of Transamazonica Rd in Para, Brazil on March 13, 2019. NGO Imazon says deforestation in the Amazon increased 54% in Jan. 2019 -the 1st month of Pres. Bolsonaro's term- compared to the same month in 2018. (Mauro Pimentel/AFP/Getty Images)

Social media is lighting up over the devastating wildfires that are spreading across the Amazon rainforest.

The fires have been raging for more than two weeks and can now be seen from space, according to new images captured by NASA.

MORE: Amazon wildfires can be seen from space, NASA images show

Amazonas, the largest state in Brazil, recently declared a state of emergency over the forest fires, according to Euro News.

Now the hashtag #PrayForAmazonia is trending across social networks as people share images of the destruction, the smoke that can be seen 2,000 miles away in Sao Paulo and debate the politics surrounding the fires.

Many people are also asking for ways to help. Below is a list of organizations that you can join or help, and a few habits you can change:
 

Amazon Watch
Help indigenous people who live in and depend on the rainforest through Amazon Watch. The nonprofit organization partners with indigenous and environmental organizations in campaigns for human rights, corporate accountability and the preservation of the Amazon's ecological systems.
 

Rainforest Action Network
Rainforest Action Network (RAN) has the mission of preserving forests, protecting the climate and upholding human rights by challenging corporate power and systemic injustice through frontline partnerships and strategic campaigns.

In the last 30 years, RAN has targeted several companies and industries that act as the greatest drivers of deforestation and climate change, forcing them to take new action including companies like Burger King, Home Depot, Lowe's and Mitsubishi.

You can also protect the land through RAN's Protect-an-Acre program, which provides funding to help forest peoples gain legal recognition of their territories, develop locally-based alternative economic initiatives, and resist destructive practices such as logging and fossil fuel development.

 

Rainforest Trust
You can help purchase and protect threatened land through the Rainforest Trust. Rainforest Trust purchases and protects the most threatened tropical forests, saving endangered wildlife.


World Wildlife Fund
Help protect animals living in the jungle through the World Wildlife Fund. You can adopt an animal, make a donation, fundraise or volunteer.
 

Small at-home changes you can make:

  • Reduce your paper use.
  • Reduce your wood consumption.
  • Reduce your beef consumption.
  • Buy products through the Rainforest Alliance.