Focus
The Prince's Rainforests Project launch a new website
6th June 2008
The Prince of Wales has marked World Environment Day by renewing his call for global action to stop the destruction of the tropical rainforests.
In an article in the UK’s Daily Telegraph newspaper on 5th June, His Royal Highness said deforestation had to be stopped because it was a major contributor to climate change. He explained that not only do the rainforests play a crucial role in cooling the climate and providing vitally important fresh water and rainfall for the entire planet, but when they are cut down and burned the carbon stored in them is released into the atmosphere in vast quantities. Carbon emissions from deforestation are greater than from the entire global transport sector.
For these reasons, The Prince believes it is vital to save the world’s remaining rainforests from destruction, which is why he has set up his Rainforests Project. The initiative, launched in October 2007, has brought together 15 of the world’s largest and most influential companies and some of the world’s top environmental and economic experts to help find solutions to the problem.
To explain its work and help rally support for the cause, The Project launched its own website – www.princesrainforestsproject.org – on 5th June. Its contents include an introductory “blog” from His Royal Highness, two short animated films highlighting the urgent need for action to end deforestation, and some new research into public awareness of the problem. It will also provide regular updates on the progress of the Project’s work.
As he explained in the Telegraph article, its objective is to “find innovative ways of paying the countries which are the custodians of the tropical rainforests an appropriate price for the eco-system services they provide and so out-compete the drivers of deforestation.”
Ultimately, the solution will be an economic one. Or, as His Royal Highness explained in his article: “Put simply, our aim is to make the rainforests worth more alive than dead. It is worth remembering, perhaps, that it has become accepted throughout the developed world that people pay for utilities like gas, water and electricity. The rainforests are probably our greatest natural utility, providing huge and irreplaceable benefits. It is time we started to pay for them too.”
Click here to read The Prince's article that featured in the Daily Telegraph on 5th June 2008.