Forest Restoration

For over a decade, Imazon has been working through scientific research, field project implementation, and engagement with both public and private sectors to offer the best solutions for scaling up forest restoration in the Amazon. This work also includes reforestation efforts and Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR or RNA, in Portuguese) initiatives in municipalities in Pará, currently covering an area of 3,500 hectares. This is equivalent to twice the size of the Utinga State Park.

As part of the Amazon Monitoring Program, Imazon monitors secondary vegetation in the region using satellite imagery. This vegetation refers to forests that regenerate naturally or are planted after primary forest has been cleared. The results of this monitoring are presented interactively on the FloreSer platform. Through this tool, the institute provides essential data to support decision-making by public and private actors regarding forest restoration projects and the protection of these areas, which can regain characteristics of mature forests in approximately three decades.

These data are also used in scientific publications and field projects under the Landscape Restoration Program, Imazon’s division focused exclusively on this theme. Some of the publications, developed in partnership with the Policy and Socioeconomics Program, assess the potential and the public and private actions needed to scale up forest restoration both across the entire Amazon and in specific territories such as Pará and the municipality of Paragominas. The program also studies and promotes Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR), identifying priority areas for low-cost recovery. At the scale of rural properties, the program conducts land cover and land use assessments, offering recommendations for environmental and productive improvements.

In the field, the program operates in municipalities in Pará through forest restoration projects such as the ongoing Forest Forever initiative. Under this project, Imazon supports the recovery of Permanent Preservation Areas (APPs), the implementation of Agroforestry Systems (SAFs) on family farming properties, and the application of Assisted Natural Regeneration (RNA) on medium and large farms. The project covers a total of 3,500 hectares. The program also offers training to form restoration multipliers in the Legal Amazon and sets up so-called “Forest Classrooms,” which are SAFs located within schools.

Through the Rights and Sustainability Program, Imazon has partnered with other scientific institutions to evaluate the forest restoration proposals in the Pará State Plan Amazônia Agora (PEAA), publishing its recommendations in a study. Within the Protected Areas Program, the institute has been working to encourage the recovery of deforested areas within conservation units, Indigenous lands, and quilombola territories.

Finally, the institute’s communications team has been producing explanatory materials on forest restoration in the Amazon to help democratize the scientific knowledge generated by Imazon. One highlight includes short videos, up to three minutes long, created for the institute’s social media channels. These videos received more than 40,000 views on Instagram alone between 2022 and 2023.