Tome-Acu is located in State of Para, Brazil, in the eastern part of the Amazon Basin, and it is becoming heavily deforested. The major factor behind this is the development of large-scale cattle ranches, and the situation is being accelerated by the sale of land owned by small-scale farmers to developers as they move to urban areas. The Wildlife Research Society is working to prevent these small-scale farmers abandoning their land by creating models that improve living standards and restore forests, and is working with local Japanese immigrant communities to encourage the introduction of agroforestry* techniques. This project aims to teach agroforestry techniques to small-scale farmers belonging to an agricultural producers co-op in the Mariquita River basin and plant a diverse mix of trees and crops to reforest the riverside areas of Tome-Acu. The Tomé-Açu General Agriculture Union, which has a largely Japanese-Brazilian membership, is acting as the local counterpart for these activities and will formulate reforestation plans, conduct soil improvement and planting initiatives, and provide guidance on agriculuture and tree cultivation, in order to shape the forest.
*Agroforestry is a method of agriculture and forestry where crops are planted between trees.