Do the Canadians/Peruvians also support the project?

Most Canadians are absolutely thrilled when they hear about our project and get involved right away. Unfortunately, many people in Canada are still unaware of the finite nature of resources. In addition, timber production is a traditional and very important industry with an influential and financially powerful lobby, similar to the automotive industry in Germany. Although there are Canadian NGOs working to protect the last wilderness areas, their political influence is limited. However, we do have a number of partners in Canada who are working with us to preserve the temperate rainforests, and our team at WI Canada consists largely of locals. 

The situation is similar in Peru. Many Peruvians who learn about us and our project want to get involved right away. This is also true of our local partners, who are delighted that our organization is purchasing and protecting their land. We work with local organizations and employ many Peruvians at WI Peru, both in the office and directly in our protected areas as forest rangers or in our environmental education projects. 

Unfortunately, in everyday political and global economic life, short-term profit is all too often prioritized over the long-term preservation of the livelihoods of all inhabitants of planet Earth. Therefore, we must not only protect the rainforest from short-term profit interests, but also educate the local population about the importance of the rainforest for humanity and offer them a livable future with alternative income opportunities that do not involve the destruction of the rainforest.