Mongabay: Suriname will not be saved by soybeans (commentary)

In a new commentary for Mongabay, Dr. Mark Plotkin, ethnobotanist and President of the Amazon Conservation Team, argues that large-scale foreign agribusiness — Brazilian, Mennonite, or otherwise — won’t modernize Suriname’s economy and bring shared prosperity, as promised. Instead, drawing on patterns seen throughout tropical America, he argues it will do the opposite: clearing forest,…

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The Invisible Pollinators of the Amazon

Blue Honey

Written by: Barbara Onkle How stingless bees are helping communities protect forests, preserve knowledge, and build sustainable futures When people think of bees, they usually imagine the common honeybee. But across the Amazon, hundreds of native stingless bee species quietly sustain forests, food systems, and cultural traditions, often without being noticed at all. Hidden inside…

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Protecting a Global Food Staple: Statement on Cassava Disease

The Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) is monitoring the potential spread of Witches’ Broom disease in cassava crops across the Guianas. The fungal pathogen Ceratobasidium causes broom-like shoots and can sharply reduce yields of one of the world’s most important staple foods.  “Cassava is the major food crop in these regions imagine what crop failure would mean,” Dr. Mark Plotkin, ethnobotanist and ACT president, said. “For millions of families,…

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