The Rainforests are LUCKY to have STING!
Last night at The Harvard Club in New York City, World renown composer, singer, best selling author, actor, and humanitarian Sting and Trudie Styler, actress, film producer, director, human rights activist, environmentalist and UNICEF Ambassador, were honored for their worldwide environmental work on behalf of the rainforest and indigenous people by the Cinema for Peace Foundation and the BMZ, Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. The enchanted night celebrated their life long commitment. The night concluded with the entire room of notables, including Jessye Norman, Mike Woods, Loreen Arbus, Amir Dossal, Inge Solheim, John Kluge, Tim Morehouse, Cheyenne Jackson, Peter Thum, Cara Buono, Amy Goodman, dancing to Every Breath You Take performed acoustically by award winning musicians and Sting. The Rainforests, Indigenous People And The World Are Lucky To Have Sting And Trudy!
STING SAVES TROPICAL ANIMAL HABITATS
After witnessing first-hand the destructive effects of rainforest removal on the environments of animals and indigenous populations, world-famous musician Sting and his wife Trudie Styler started The Rainforest Foundation, dedicated to preserving the earth’s rainforest environments and resources.
Since it’s inception in 1989, The Rainforest Foundation has saved over 100,000 square kilometers of rainforest and counting! This might seems like a lot, but every single year, a rainforest the size of England and Wales combined is lost to deforestation, destroying life-sustaining resources and shelters for thousands of humans and animals. In addition to preserving physical ecosystems, The Rainforest Foundation is also dedicated to reforming African Forest law, protecting rainforests against climate change, and advocating for the rights of native Pygmy Peoples.
The world’s rainforests are home the most diverse animal populations on the planet, and the homes of these animals are disappearing every minute. According to www.savetherainforest.org, “An average of 35 species become extinct every day in the world’s tropical rainforests.” Some experts suspect that number is even higher, reaching up to 137 species per day, including plants and insects (www.rain-tree.com). Eventually, nearly half of the world’s living species will be destroyed or endangered because of rainforest removal!
Humans as well as animals are directly affected by this tragedy. Due to the damages to their natural environments, it is difficult for the indigenous hunter-gatherer societies that inhabit rainforests to practice sustainable and cruelty-free hunting practices, leaving animal populations vulnerable to economically-driven hunting that is often especially cruel to animals, whereas native hunters only kill when absolutely necessary and according to tribal customs dedicated to preserving and respecting the spirit of every living creature.
As a result, these valuable tribal cultures are rapidly disappearing. According to www.savetheamazon.org, there were nearly ten million indigenous peoples living in the Amazon five hundred years ago. Today, that number has dwindled to less the 200,000. People living in the rainforest are not the only ones affected – because of the large number of trees and carbon dioxide-recycling plants, the Amazon alone produces twenty percent of the world’s oxygen. As the rainforests continue to disappear, people everywhere will literally find that it becomes harder to breathe.
Sting’s Rainforest Foundation sponsors many large-scale events an initiatives to support rainforest preservation, including fundraising concerts that draw some of the world’s most talented and well-known musicians, who donate their time to support the cause. Says co-founder Trudie Styler, “We’re so thankful for artists like Elton John, James Taylor, and the many others who are doing their part to support the Rainforest Fund in its quest to raise awareness of the global environmental crisis we’re facing.”
Luckily, there are many ways you can participate in Sting’s mission and help save the rainforests! For just twenty-five pounds sterling (the equivalent of less than $40 US), you can protect an entire acre of rainforest. In exchange for your support, you’ll get a photo, a certificate, and a sheet of information about your particular acre; you can even give one as a gift to an eco-friendly friend! There are also opportunities to volunteer your time and participate in fundraising marathons and yogathons.
To find out more about how you can help save the planet’s rainforests and tropical animals, visit www.rainforestfoundationuk.org
Originally published on Animal Fair, September 2012.
