Volunteering

We’ve had the honor of getting to know the Pataxó indigenous community in Brazil, which consists of about 12,000 members living primarily in the southern part of the state of Bahia. It’s part of the Atlantic Forest biome (Mata Atlântica), which was once the second largest rainforest on the planet—after the Amazon—but has suffered deforestation on 85% of its area.

One Pataxó village has a goal of replanting 100,000 trees on its land, the brainchild of its young leader, Arassari. In the past six years, they’ve planted 36,000 native seedlings purchased from a local Pataxó-owned nursery and with technical support from university agronomists. At an all-in cost of US$1.50 per planted seedling and with an 80% survival rate, their track record compares favorably to much larger reforestation projects driven by carbon credits, commissions, and blind-eyed counterfactuals (more here).

In January 2024, we stayed at Arassari’s village and planted 1,100 seedlings and installed solar systems for well water, lighting and cell phone charging. We’ll be returning in July 2024 for more plantings.

Arassari is a licensed attorney who travels throughout Brazil and abroad to educate people about the indigenous in Brazil. He’s been to South Florida twice in the past two years speaking to a dozen schools and over 2,000 students and teachers. Learn more by following him on Instagram: @arassari_pataxo.