The Amazon rainforest is an iconic world ecosystem often referred to as “the lungs of the planet.” Yet it is being destroyed day by day. What systems are in place to monitor loss of valuable ecosystems? How effective are these systems? In 2019, the United Nations announced the “UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.” This international body estimates that restoration of 350 million hectares of degraded land between now and 2030 could generate USD 9 trillion in ecosystem services and take an additional 13-26 gigatons of greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere, gases that are warming the planet. On March 9, […]