The Amazon Rainforest is one of the most important ecosystems on Earth, but it is also being heavily exploited. Deforestation has reached 26%, and experts fear it is reaching a tipping point that could lead to widespread desertification. Amazon watch partners with Indigenous communities of the Amazon, who represent over 500 different groups, to stop oil drilling and other extractive practices taking place in their lands. Their tactics include establishing No Go Zones to keep oil in the ground, corporate campaigns against oil companies and their enablers, reducing California's demand for Amazon crude and seeking remediation for past harm. A huge win came recently when, in partnership with the Yasuní, they helped establish a referendum to permanently keep oil in the ground under Yasuní National Park in Ecuador, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.

In 2024, Bently Foundation awarded Amazon Watch with a $50,000 grant to support their End Amazon Crude campaign.

Photos by André Dib, Caroline Bennett, and Amazon Watch staff.

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