Cynthia S. Simmons – The Conversation

A burnt area in Amazonas state, Brazil, Sept. 21, 2022. Fires in the Amazon are often set to clear land. Michael Dantas/AFP via Getty Images

November 18, 2022

Ending Amazon deforestation: 4 essential reads about the future of the world’s largest rainforest

Jennifer Weeks, The Conversation

Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva says he will end land clearance in Brazil’s Amazon region. But powerful forces profit from rainforest destruction.

A satellite captured large and small deforestation patches in Amazonas State in 2015. The forest loss has escalated since then. USGS/NASA Landsat data/Orbital Horizon/Gallo Images/Getty Images

March 7, 2022

The great Amazon land grab – how Brazil’s government is clearing the way for deforestation

Gabriel Cardoso Carrero, University of Florida; Cynthia S. Simmons, University of Florida, and Robert T. Walker, University of Florida

Land grabs spearheaded by wealthy interests are accelerating deforestation, and Brazil’s National Congress is working to legitimize them.

Collecting firewood on the Waiapi indigenous reserve in Amapa state, Brazil, Oct. 13, 2017. A new bill could open Brazil’s Native lands to development. APU GOMES/AFP via Getty Images

February 27, 2020

Indigenous people may be the Amazon’s last hope

Robert T. Walker, University of Florida; Aline A. Carrara, University of Florida; Cynthia S. Simmons, and Maira Irigaray, University of Florida

Native Brazilians are among the Amazon’s most effective defenders against logging and mining, because they’re fighting not just for the environment but for their people’s very survival.

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