Trust the Forest, Gabon

Primary forests are forests that have not been cut for 600-1000 years. Increasingly rare, their value is considerably greater than that derived from wood harvesting today. Each year, we lose ten million hectares of the world’s most ancient forests: the equivalent of a football field every two seconds. The main cause of this fast and uncontrolled destruction, particularly in Africa, is the harvesting of wood, often used to produce low-value items. Tropical forests are home to 90% of the planet’s life-forms, despite covering only 6% of its surface. They are the green lungs of the Earth, controlling both climate and carbon dioxide levels. 

This project was run in collaboration with the Italian Foundation “Trust the Forest”, which has worked in Gabon for the past fifteen years to save one of the world’s most beautiful tropical forests, along the river lvindo. 

Published in "IL", the monthly magazine of "IL SOLE 24 ORE"