Rainforest Rescue

@rainforestrescue
19 Followers
43 Following
34 Posts
Rainforest Rescue, or Rettet den Regenwald, is a German NGO founded in 1986. We collaborate with over fifty grassroots environmental, human rights, and Indigenous organizations across the Americas, Africa, and Southeast Asia. From the Congo Basin to the corridors of Brussels, we support our partners’ efforts and amplify the voices of front-line activists.
Rainforest RescueMar 20

#GoodNews: Our partner FEM EARTH – Women for the Planet led the fight to save Uganda's Kitubulu Forest. Their advocacy, backed by legal teams, pushed Uganda's president to act. This is what organized communities can do. #RainforestRescue #ActForRainforest

https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/updates/15139/hope-for-the-kitubulu-forest-uganda-halts-plans-to-clear-protected-reserve?t=30654

Hope for the Kitubulu Forest: Uganda halts plans to clear protected reserve

A protected forest near Lake Victoria was set to be cleared for offices and a shopping mall. After sustained pressure from civil society, Uganda’s president has ordered the cancellation of all land titles in the Kitubulu Forest Reserve.

Rainforest Rescue
Rainforest RescueJan 31
When speaking truth becomes a legal risk, democracy suffers. Strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) are rising – 1,300 cases since 2010. We urgently need strong anti‑SLAPP laws. #RainforestRescue #ActForRainforest https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/updates/14940/slapp-lawsuits-dragging-democracy-into-the-dock?t=30268
SLAPP lawsuits: dragging democracy into the dock

Across Europe, activists are being intimidated, threatened, and sued simply for speaking out against wrongdoing. A new study on intimidation lawsuits reveals that Germany is among the countries with the highest number of strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs). Our petition is urgent: we need a strong anti‑SLAPP law with real teeth!

Rainforest Rescue
Rainforest RescueJan 27
#Nigeria: When villagers in Ekuri forest stopped bulldozers to protect their land, they believed the president’s timber ban had their back. Instead, police arrested their leader, Martins Egot. The machines are back – but so is his resolve.
#RainforestRescue #ActForRainforest https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/updates/14919/president-strengthens-forest-protection-but-police-arrest-forest-defenders?t=30189
President strengthens forest protection – but police arrest forest defenders

President Bola Tinubu has banned timber exports to protect forests – yet rainforest defender Martins Egot has been arrested, accused of inciting young people to violence. The activists had stopped machinery belonging to the logging company Ezemac as it entered the Ekuri Community Forest. The case shows that presidential decrees are not enough – the forest’s future will be decided on the ground.

Rainforest Rescue
Rainforest RescueJan 26
Indonesia orders 28 companies to shut down after Cyclone Senyar – including Toba Pulp Lestari and the Batang Toru dam. Years of destruction finally meet accountability. Local communities and allies demanded this outcome for decades. #RainforestRescue #ActForRainforest https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/updates/14907/sumatra-government-shuts-down-dozens-of-destructive-companies?t=30145
Sumatra: government shuts down dozens of destructive companies

Two months after Cyclone Senyar hit Sumatra, permits for the dam and hydropower plant in the Batang Toru forest have been revoked with immediate effect. The Martabe gold mine, the pulp company Toba Pulp Lestari, and 25 other firms must also shut down. The Indonesian Secretary of State announced the decision at a high-profile press conference.

Rainforest Rescue
Rainforest RescueJan 20
Nigeria’s forests are at a breaking point. Gorillas, chimpanzees, and elephants are losing their homes to illegal logging. President Tinubu’s export ban is progress – but it means little without enforcement. Demand real protection now. ✍️ #RainforestRescue #ActForRainforest https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/petitions/1318/nigeria-s-forests-cannot-wait-enforce-the-timber-export-ban-now?t=30084
Nigeria’s forests cannot wait – enforce the timber export ban now!

Gorillas, chimpanzees, and elephants – Nigeria’s jungles shelter some of the world’s most iconic and endangered species. Yet the forests are being destroyed at an alarming rate. President Tinubu has now banned the export of wood and related products. This marks a policy milestone, but its success depends on enforcement on the ground.

Rainforest Rescue
Rainforest RescueJan 13
Half of Chiapas’ forests have already disappeared – victims of illegal logging and weak enforcement. The mountains and rainforests of southern Mexico are treasures of biodiversity now on the brink. Tell Mexico’s government to enforce its environmental laws. ✍️ #RainforestRescue #ActForRainforest https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/petitions/1316/mexico-stop-the-destruction-of-chiapas-forests?t=29973
Mexico: Stop the destruction of Chiapas’ forests!

The forests of Mexico’s Chiapas state are among the most biodiverse on Earth, yet they face grave danger: Nearly half have already been illegally logged for timber. Please support the campaign of our partner organization, Otros Mundos Chiapas, to stop the destruction by signing our petition.

Rainforest Rescue
Rainforest RescueJan 2
“Thank you – for believing that the rainforest matters.” Our Nigerian partner Odey Oyama’s message is for every person who has ever signed, shared, or donated. Your support keeps activists safe and forests standing. #RainforestRescue #ActForRainforest https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/updates/14552/the-power-of-truth-and-community-solidarity?t=29830
The power of truth and community solidarity

Odey Oyama is one of Nigeria's leading rainforest environmentalists. Director of the Rainforest Resource Development Centre (RRDC), Oyama has been our partner for nine years. In this interview – shortened for publication in Regenwald Report, our German print magazine – he shares his recent experience campaigning to save the rainforest of Cross River State in Nigeria.

Rainforest Rescue
Rainforest RescueNov 24, 2025

Please SIGN: 240 organizations, Indigenous peoples and grassroots movements are uniting against the #TFFF. Together we say: our forests are not for speculation, our lives are not collateral. Stand with this global alliance.

#RainforestRescue #ActForRainforest

https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/petitions/1317/rainforest-protection-is-not-a-profit-machine-stop-the-tfff?t=29345

Rainforest protection is not a profit machine: Stop the TFFF!

The COP30 World Climate Conference in Brazil saw the launch of the new Tropical Forests Forever Facility (TFFF) to finance conservation. Yet instead of addressing the causes of deforestation, the TFFF is turning rainforest protection into a financial product: While investors profit, Indigenous forest defenders are left empty-handed.

Rainforest Rescue
Rainforest RescueNov 23, 2025
Our partners in #Brazil tell their stories: In Maranhão, drones and planes douse villages, crops and water with pesticides so agribusiness can seize land. Communities call it chemical warfare. #RainforestRescue #ActForRainforest https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/updates/14541/brazil-checking-in-with-our-partners-in-maranhao?t=29386
Brazil: Checking in with our partners in Maranhão

Guadalupe Rodríguez, Felipe Duran and Klaus Schenck are in Brazil on behalf of Rainforest Rescue to touch base with our partner organizations. Here is their report on the visits in the state of Maranhão. The final stop on their journey will be the the Peoples’ Summit, which will take place alongside the COP30 World Climate Conference in mid-November in Belém in the Amazon region.

Rainforest Rescue
Rainforest RescueNov 15, 2025

Making our voices heard in Belém at #COP30!

#RainforestRescue #ActForRainforest #PowerToThePeople #NoPlanetB