Why buy this
Fight fires in the Amazon gift?
- The climate crisis affects all of us. By providing tools to fire fighters in the Amazon, they are able to protect the Amazon against the increasing threat of fire.
- Your gift can provide tools, such as hoes, sickles and hammers which enable the indigenous fire brigade to manage the land, preventing fires from starting or spreading.
- This charity gift is perfect for the climate heroes in your life, by standing in solidarity with the climate heroes in the Amazon.
Case study: Firefighting in the Amazon
“When they didn’t have these tools, the communities survived however they could, and some disasters occurred – destroying communities’ crops and animals” Jessica, Environmental Coordinator in Brazil
Paula, 45, is a mother and member of the Indigenous Environment Protection Brigade who lives with her family in the northern Brazilian Amazon. As part of the indigenous Macuxi people, they were granted rights to remain on their land in 2009 by the Brazilian government. But life is still challenging, as their land feels the effects of the climate crisis, particularly with unpredictable periods of drought and floods. Intense and prolonged droughts make their lands vulnerable to “hot spots”, and without proper management, it increases the likelihood of fires spreading.
Paula volunteers as an indigenous firefighter to help prevent fires from spreading out of control. She also trains communities to ensure small fires, used by farmers to clear their land, are managed safely. Her work involves monitoring hot spots, managing the land, and extinguishing fires before they spread. Thanks to funding from CAFOD, Paula and the rest of the indigenous fire brigade have access to tools, such as hoes, sickles and hammers to make this land management easier.
Jessica, a local Environment Coordinator who works with Paula said “These teams need these tools (hammer, sickle and hoe) to do fire prevention work. They use these tools to manage the land, especially around hills, so that fires don’t spread rapidly up or downhill, they do it around the community so that the fires don’t spread to their crops.”