Deforestation and Forest Degradation Stories

A new WWF report on global forest cover and forest loss finds that over 160,000 square miles, an area roughly the size of California, were lost in deforestation hot spots around the world between 2004 and 2017. Deforestation puts human health and the health of our planet at risk. 

Thirty Hills is the last large block of intact, lowland forest still standing in central Sumatra. After five years of successful forest conservation, we celebrate five major wins within this critically important landscape.

Tawau, the east malaysian district where Christina Ak Lang grew up, is a tropical paradise.

A new WWF report details a vibrant diversity of plants and vertebrate animals in Southeast Asia that have never been scientifically identified.

The Elephant Conservation Unit of WWF-Malaysia uses collaring to learn more about the elephants in Sabah. The information they collect from these collars helps the conservationists better protect the elephants and develop strategies to reduce instances of human wildlife conflict. 

Environmental destruction and the high-risk wildlife trade are intimately connected with the emergence of new zoonotic diseases like COVID-19, but conservation could help prevent future pandemics.

As the world reels from the COVID-19 pandemic, WWF is working with global health company Johnson & Johnson to understand the underlying links between disease and deforestation.

Acoustic guitars are often made from wood species susceptible to overharvesting and climate change. In the Congo Basin, Taylor Guitars is providing a hopeful model for restoring vulnerable tonewoods.

Kerry Cesareo, WWF-US senior vice president for forests, on WWF's solutions to protect and restore the world's forests—and to address climate change.

As flames engulfed parts of the world last year, WWF sent emergency support to help local firefighters and communities in need.

As vice president and deputy lead for forests, Josefina Braña Varela leads WWF's work to halt deforestation and forest degradation around the world.

In an ambitious undertaking, WWF and International Paper (IP) are working alongside a local nursery to help restore parts of Brazil’s Atlantic Forest, which has faced of years of deforestation.

Bearcats inhabit the tropical rain forests of Southeast Asia, spending most of their time high in tree canopies. And they're especially known for one strange attribute: They smell like popcorn.

Working alongside communities, governments, and scientists, WWF-Nepal has become an intrepid leader in protecting and conserving endangered tigers and the habitats where they live.

Madagascar is home to remarkable, unique biodiversity. Unfortunately, threats to the island’s flora and fauna abound. Without strong conservation strategies, several species could be lost for good.

In Malaysian state of Sabah, WWF is helping to establish a wildlife corridor through a palm oil plantation to connect two reserves, which will protect crops and allow wildlife to roam freely.

The conservation and restoration of forests is a necessary component of a future where humanity is better able to manage and cope with the emergence of new infectious diseases. Without landscapes that balance the needs of both nature and people, the world will continue only to react to global health crises instead of preventing them.

The latest survey assessing the population of monarch butterflies that winter in Mexico indicates a population decrease of 53% since the previous season. In the 2019-2020 wintering season, the area of forest occupied by monarch butterflies was 7 acres, down from 15 acres in the 2018 - 2019 season.

While monarchs are not endangered, their marvelous migration is at risk. Because they cluster in an area of just a few squares miles, loss of habitat to forest degradation has serious consequences.

Forest restoration is a complex undertaking that can never fully bring back the original forest. That’s why it’s far better to conserve existing healthy forests and prevent them from being degraded or destroyed in the first place.

2019 has been a year of both wins and losses for rhinos. Though still facing threats like poaching and habitat loss, the global rhino population has increased by 30 percent over the past decade.

Our forests are in crisis. Nearly half of all global forests are under threat of deforestation and forest degradation, which represents a major risk to global climate, biodiversity, water, people, and businesses who depend on healthy forests. HP is one company that’s responding to this need for action.

It's hard to identify a tree species by looking at just the wood. We rarely know whether the tree listed on the label of wood products is accurate—or legal. WWF is looking to forensics for answers.

Climate change adaptation and mitigation are both equally important and time-sensitive in today's climate crisis. We must do both.