Scary numbers here. Sad to see people still entrusting big corporations with their economic welfare even as corporate profits are in decline.

Indonesia’s forests were cleared at a rate of 1.5 million hectares per year between 2000 and 2009, reports a new satellite-based assessment by Forest Watch Indonesia (FWI), an NGO. Expansion of oil palm and wood-pulp plantations were the biggest drivers of deforestation, yet account for a declining share of the national economy.

A project in the Amazon currently pays $33 a month to 7,600 families in exchange for a pledge to protect the rainforest, packaged with other aid.

Deforestation accounts for an estimated 12-18 percent of the world’s carbon emissions - roughly the same as the world’s entire transport sector. But forests are being destroyed at a fast clip - more than 13 million hectares annually, an area roughly the size of England.

The WWF recently published a report on the threats facing the 1000 new species recently discovered in New Guinea. The ilsand is estimated to house 6-8% of the world’s species. 2/3rds of New Guinea wildlife is unique to the area. Deforestation to build palm oil plantations is the biggest threat to the island’s wildlife. You can help too, by only buying palm oil products certified by the RSPO:

The RSPO, or Roundtable Sustainable Palm Oil, provides certification to companies which produce palm oil from sustainable resources and ensures that all aspects of the production are environmentally friendly.

Consumers can find retailers in their country selling products made with RSPO certified palm oil by searching the organization’s website for certified companies by type, country, and name…consumers can look for the RSPO trademark - palm tree leaves surrounded with the words “certified sustainable palm tree oil” - which will begin appearing on products by the end of this year.