Before the fires, the Amazon was a lush, wonderful, tranquil environment where biodiversity would flourish. Everyone on our planet benefits from the health of the Amazon. Yet, in the month of January 2019, nearly 17% of the Amazon rainforest caught on fire (Vox). The cause of the fires are still up for debate. The Amazon is a massive part of Brazil and occupies 60% of all of Brazil’s territory (Vox). The rainforest spreads across nine other countries which include Ecuador, Venezuela, Bolivia, Peru, Suriname, Guyana, and French Guiana (worldatlas). Over two million acres of land have been destroyed. The United Nations is the only source that can help save the world from this mass destruction by having the power to prompt Brazil to take action. If the United Nations fails to address the wildfires in the Amazon, the citizens of Brazil, whose government is not fulfilling their needs, would be severely impacted as will the wellbeing of our Earth and all of its living beings. 

The Amazon rainforest is a critical global resource, being a carbon sink, temperature regulator, and a key source of freshwater. Deforestation has already damaged the Amazon’s ability to perform these crucial roles (foreignpolicy). According to Amazoniad, Peru is one of the world’s largest producers of gold, copper, tinc, zinc, and silver. These are materials that make up the things that we use in our daily lives.  Additionally, 80% of our favorite foods come from the Amazon, including chocolate, coffee, rice, tomatoes, potatoes, black pepper, and corn (Amazoniad). Without access to these resources, the Brazilian and international trade market is sure to decline.  

The wildfires in the Amazon have and will continue to have negative effects on humans and wildlife. If they are improperly handled, they can have an even greater impact on the future of humanity and our ecosystem. Published data from Vice, has shown an 88% increase in deforestation in the Amazon compared to the same area one year ago. These increasingly dry and warm conditions could potentially convert the Amazon into a dry savanna (foreignpolicy). The impact could be detrimental, for trees hold a lot of water, and the less trees means room for more fires (Vice). Brazil is also home to one million indigenous people and three million species of plants and animals (Vice). These fires directly impact them by harming the ecosystem in which they live in. If they continue to spread, our ecosystem will be completely altered. These fires emit dangerous amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. CO2 can also be known as a “greenhouse gas”, gases that contribute to global warming by absorbing infrared heat, therefore trapping unwanted heat in the atmosphere (foreignpolicy).

Brazil’s president, Jair Bolsonaro, has refused to move forward with a solution. Some may argue that if the United Nations intervenes, it would be a violation of Brazil’s sovereignty. State sovereignty allows national governments to do whatever they want in their own borders and 60% of the Amazon is under control of the Brazilian government (foreignpolicy). However, it is necessary for the UN to intervene because without intervention, Brazil will continue to downplay the seriousness of the worldwide issue. Voters have said that since Jair Bolsonaro has taken office, the Amazon has suffered losses at an accelerated rate (Vice). He also has threatened to withdraw Brazil from the Paris agreement on climate change and has stated that, “Environmental legislation is suffocating the economy.” (The Hill). Evidently, Brazil's short-sightedness and dormant behavior on tackling the Amazon rainforest epidemic will have devastatingly irreversible consequences for all humanity.    

Please #SavetheAmazon by signing this petition.