Why we stand up for the rainforest

During my journeys to the cocoa farmers in Latin America I have seen the rainforest several times. This diversity of creatures, the sophisticated coexistence of giant trees, small ferns, ants and monkeys is simply breathtaking. An unparalleled coexistence of different species has evolved itself in the rainforest over millions of years.

More than three quarters of all agricultural crops originate from the tropics, and three of them rank among the staple food of humanity: wheat, rice and maize. Half of the worldwide licensed medicines are of plant origin and rainforest represents of course our green protective belt in the fight against climate change.

Even though the advantages and the importance of the rainforest are obvious, 36 football pitches of forest are cleared every minute!

Moreover I have seen the deforestation, the glowing heat above it, the mud avalanches and the human beings who may no longer subsist on the forest.
I’m not the one to remain idle in this respect and when the UNO declared 2011 to be the Year of the Forest, I immediately got involved in the project. With our Piece of Forest project we make a small contribution to the protection of the forest habitat.