Brazilian couple spent 20 years planting an entire forest, and thousands of wild animals returned home thanks to it

Each year, the Earth loses around 7.3 million hectares of forest, which is equivalent to the size of Panama. Such significant changes in the environment affect not only humans, but also countless species of animals, who have to abandon their habitats and seek refuge elsewhere.

Currently, what we must do is stop the destruction of our Planet by any means possible. And a Brazilian couple, Sebastião and Lélia Salgado, showed that anyone can have a positive impact on the environment, making deforestation a milder problem.

At the awesome.club we find out exactly how this dedicated couple managed to achieve such great results and transform a desolate landscape into a wildlife paradise.

In 1994, Brazilian photojournalist Sebastião Salgado returned from East Africa, where he was documenting the horrors of the Rwandan genocide. After this traumatic experience, sought peace in the lush green forest of his homeland, Minas Gerais.

However, what he saw was even more devastating: in just a few years, a rich forest had become a severely deteriorated and dusty landscape, with dry rivers and not a trace of wildlife. The land was covered by only 0.5% trees. Salgado was very disappointed with what he witnessed.

At that time, his wife Lélia made an almost impossible proposal. She believed that this land could regain its former glory if both put every effort into it🇧🇷 Sebastião supported the idea and the couple decided to replant the entire area with a species that flourished there. Since then, a miraculous transformation began to take place.

Salgado planted his first seed in 1998, but two people wouldn’t be enough to do such a big job. In order to restore the desert’s 709 hectares of forest, the couple hired 24 people who worked day and night with the owners, collecting invasive weeds, planting new seedlings and watering the area.

At the same time, Salgado began to build a network of enthusiastic volunteers and partners who would fund and sustain his massive project. To attract attention to the mission, the couple created an environmental organization called Instituto Terra.

The main objective of Instituto Terra was to restore the ecosystem in the area, with the production of seedlings from the Atlantic Forest. They also had an ambitious educational campaign, which involved students, teachers, farmers and local authorities. To raise awareness of the problem, the institute went so far as to advise farmers, miners and others who worked in the forest region.

The hard work of the organization has paid off: the tropical trees, native to the region, began to bloom rapidly, despite the fact that the area has suffered severe deforestation for decades. Today there is a lush forest that has been completely reborn and is thriving again.

Since 1998, the couple planted over 4 million young trees of 293 species and restored 1,502 acres of rainforest. What was once an arid land has turned into a tropical paradise.

Thanks to the new forest, an entire ecosystem has been rebuilt from the ground up. This reforestation resulted in the revival of a tropical microclimate, which caused increased precipitation and filled streams with water.

Surprisingly, the healthy ecosystem of the new forest saved more than the local landscape, as it also encouraged wild animals to return to the area.

The return of the animals is the positive aspect most important part of the new forest. Because there is now enough food and protection for them, more than 172 species of birds, 33 types of mammals, and 15 species of amphibians and reptiles have returned home, and many of these creatures are in danger of extinction.

Salgado’s determination showed that the greatest achievements can be achieved even with the smallest stepsand that any one of us can contribute to the protection of our Planet in a personal way.

What do you think of this couple’s project? Have you ever planted a tree? Tell us in the comments section!