How can cutting down trees be good for a rainforest?
Rainforests around the world are threatened in many different ways. One of the greatest threats is the lack of value placed on rainforests as healthy, multifunctional ecosystems, rather than just a source of financial capital when liquidated. This “either/or” mentality does not recognize that a rainforests can exist as both a source of wealth to its inhabitants, and as a working ecosystem delivering all of its potential benefits to our biosphere. This often leads to dysfunctional situations where poverty-stricken residents (and governments) cannot sustain efforts at conservation (as in Madagascar and Gabon). Consistent and responsible oversight, value and ownership by local peoples and governments are critical to reversing this problem. Tragically today, unscrupulous logging still ravages our atmosphere, climate, animal habitats, local cultures, and economies. But well-managed sustainable forests offer a unique solution: with selective cutting and cultivation in dedicated areas, forest
