#PrayForAmazonia

The+Independent

The Independent

Gabriella Jamerson, Reporter

At this moment the Amazon has been burning for weeks. The Amazon Rainforest is a massive tropical forest located in South America with several million species of organisms inhabiting this 2.1 million square miles of land. This land is also home to hundreds of thousands of Indigenous people and the forest produces 20% of Earth’s oxygen.  The fire can be seen from space due to how immense it is and spreading at an alarming rate of 1.5 acres every second. This past year we’ve lost nearly one billion trees from wildfires. The loss of trees and biodiversity is accelerating climate change. Unlike the burning of Notre Dame Cathedral, which received a billion dollars in donations and tons of news coverage in less than 24 hours, no one has spoken up or even attempted to stop this massive fire that has been burning for weeks and will impact the Earth tremendously. As a common person there is really nothing we can do to put out the fire, but we can do a couple things that will help. Donate to organizations like the Rainforest Trust who purchases land in rainforests to save it from deforestation or Rainforest Action Network  that protects an acre of the Amazon. If you’re unable to donate, check out Rainforest Alliance to check the things you’re buying are rainforest safe.  Lastly recycle, reuse, reduce and stop littering.