Rainforest Trust Surpasses 60 Million Acres Protected Worldwide

Rainforest Trust has crossed a monumental conservation threshold, helping protect more than 60 million acres of rainforest habitat worldwide—an area roughly the size of the United Kingdom—through community partnerships and sustained donor support.

A Major Global Milestone

The achievement came with the establishment of the Banakima and Lowa Community Forest Concessions (CFCLs) in the Nkuba Conservation Area in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), marking 38 years of focused conservation investment aimed at securing permanent, legally recognized protection for some of the world's most threatened species and ecosystems.

"Crossing the 60-million-acre threshold is both a celebration and a responsibility," said Rainforest Trust CEO James Deutsch. "It represents decades of conservation and a reminder that protecting the world's most important rainforests depends on sustained investment by funders and strong local partnerships."

Community-Led Conservation That Lasts

Unlike top-down conservation approaches that often fail when outside funding ends, Rainforest Trust's model centers on community-led, sustainable conservation solutions that deliver lasting benefits for people, wildlife, and the climate.

The newly established CFCLs in the DRC strengthen long-term protection in the Congo Basin—one of the planet's most critical regions for biodiversity and carbon storage—while formally recognizing community leadership in forest management.

This legal recognition is transformative: it gives local communities the authority to manage their forests sustainably while protecting them from illegal logging, land conversion, and poaching.

Protecting Critical Habitat

The Nkuba Conservation Area provides vital habitat for some of Africa's most endangered species:

• Grauer's Gorillas – the world's largest gorilla subspecies, critically endangered with fewer than 5,000 remaining
• African Forest Elephants – ecosystem engineers that disperse seeds and maintain forest health, now critically endangered
• Countless other species – from rare birds to amphibians that depend on intact rainforest

These ecosystems face accelerating pressure from illegal logging, agricultural expansion, and wildlife trafficking. The formal protection established through Rainforest Trust partnerships creates a legal shield against these threats while empowering communities to benefit from conservation.

The Numbers Behind the Impact

Since 1988, Rainforest Trust has helped establish or expand protected and conserved areas across:

• Latin America and the Caribbean
• Africa
• Asia-Pacific region

The 60 million acres under protection represent:

• An area roughly the size of the United Kingdom
• Critical carbon storage equivalent to billions of tons of CO₂
• Habitat for thousands of endangered species
• Direct benefits for local and Indigenous communities who steward these lands

Why This Model Works

"Protecting nature at this scale requires long-term partnerships, legal certainty, and conservation approaches that last," said Rainforest Trust VP of Conservation James Lewis. "This achievement reflects the steady, cumulative progress of getting those fundamentals right."

The fundamentals that make this work:

1. Legal protection that endures
Working with governments to establish legally recognized protected areas and community forest concessions creates conservation that outlasts any single project or funding cycle.

2. Community ownership
When local communities have formal authority over forest management, they have both the incentive and the means to protect it from external threats.

3. Long-term partnership
38 years of relationship-building, trust, and shared success create the foundation for effective conservation at scale.

4. Donor commitment
Sustained public support allows Rainforest Trust to maintain presence and partnerships through political changes, economic shifts, and other challenges.

The Congo Basin: Earth's Second Lung

The DRC's rainforests are part of the Congo Basin, often called "Earth's second lung" after the Amazon. This vast tropical forest:

• Stores massive amounts of carbon—crucial for climate stability
• Generates rainfall that sustains agriculture across Central Africa
• Harbors extraordinary biodiversity found nowhere else on Earth
• Supports millions of people who depend on forest resources

Yet the Congo Basin faces mounting pressure from logging, mining, and land conversion—making formal protection more urgent than ever.

A Race Against Time

As deforestation pressures accelerate globally, Rainforest Trust's achievement demonstrates that conservation at scale is possible when approached with patience, partnership, and community empowerment.

The organization continues to focus on expanding this proven model, working with Indigenous and local organizations to establish new protected areas across the tropics.

How You Can Help

Rainforest Trust relies entirely on public support to continue this critical work. The organization earned a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, reflecting efficient use of donor funds and strong governance.

Every acre protected represents not just preserved wilderness, but:

• Climate stability for the planet
• Survival for endangered species
• Sustainable livelihoods for local communities
• Hope for future generations

60 million acres down. The work continues.