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For my father Paul, my mother Lucille,
my daughter Genevieve—and
future generations
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First and foremost, I’d Like to thank David Steinman for this incredible
opportunity and for believing in my ability to Lead the project from beginning to
end. A very special thank you to “Amazon John” Easterling and Olivia Newton-
John Easterling for contributing such a beautiful foreword and for aLL the good
work they do in helping the Amazon and its peopLe. Thank you to Michael
Caprio for making it happen. Thank you aLso to Tom Newmark and Steven
FarreLL for creating Finca Luna Nueva and for the conservation work they do.
The support and taLent of the Freedom Press staff meant more than they know—
thank you to SheiLa HuettL, Randi CLausen, Sandy Mastoras, Esther
Giammarco and RubeL ALvarado. Bonnie Lambert’s beautifuL design and
positive energy brought the words to Life. Thank you to AnnLee ELLingson
whose discernment and superb editing poLished and shaped the materiaL and to
Tracy Marcynszyn for her initiaL edits. Thank you to everyone at SCB
Distributors for their invaLuabLe feedback, patience and saLes expertise—
Aaron SiLverman, GabrieL WiLmoth, Lois Shearer and Tony Proe.
A sincere thanks to the foLks at the Rainforest ALLiance who generousLy
gave me their time and provided important information—Abby Ray, Anna
CLark, Sabrina VigiLante, Chris WiLLe and Edward MiLLard—and an
extended thanks to OLiver Bach at the SustainabLe AgricuLture Network.
Thank you to the Rainforest Action Network, Tim Vireo Keating and Rainforest
ReLief and Rhett ButLer for the informative website he created and maintains,
Mongabay.com, which served as an indispensabLe resource during the writing of
this book. Thank you to journaList Chris Lang and “Medicine Hunter” Chris
KiLham and many others for their contributions. TruLy, without you, this book
wouLd not exist!
A deep and sincere thank you to friends who supported me and provided
vaLuabLe feedback throughout the process of writing this book—Diana GouLd,
Judy McLaughLin-Ryan, Ann Marsh, Linda Modaro, Marcia Newman, Katrina
VogeL, Marcy Crawford, MicheLLe Liebman AngeL, Sharon Morov Warden,
Lisa SLoan Strom, NeLLy Kaufer, UrsuLa GabeL Baird, Shannon CeLia,
ALecia Singer, Robin ALtman, Kathy Lunsford, LiLy Jackson and Laura
WeLtman. I couLd not have compLeted this without my champions—my
mother, LuciLLe Stevenson, and my Late father, PauL Stevenson. Thank you to
my sweet daughter Genevieve, who supported me even when it was hard having
a “busy” mommy for so Long. To Jamie, my bonus daughter, who aLways Lifted
my spirits with each communication I received. Thank you to my brother PauL
and his wife Robin and my sisters Ananda, LesLie and Lorna for beLieving in
me. A speciaL thank you to my stepmother Mary Katharine for her genuine
enthusiasm and support, and to my stepsibLings BiLLy, Vicki and Gretchen.
And thank you to Mark Henderson, for giving me extra time when I needed it.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword by “Amazon John” Easterling and Olivia Newton-John Easterling
Introduction
About the Tropical Rainforest
1. Buy Sustainable Rainforest Tea
2. Imagine the Rainforest Is Your Backyard
3. Avoid Unsustainable Palm Oil
4. Buy Personal-Care Products That Benefit the Rainforest
5. Say No to “Dirty Gold”
6. Get Angry
7. Keep Tropical Hardwoods out of Your Home
8. Eat Less Beef
9. Spend Time in Nature
10. Ecotour in the Tropics
11. Eat Brazil Nuts
12. Choose Rainforest-Friendly Outdoor Furniture
13. Study an Indigenous Tribe
14. Buy Certified Cut Flowers
15. Get Informed
16. Break Your Paper Addiction
17. Volunteer
18. Buy Shade-Grown or Sustainably Harvested Coffee
19. Choose Better Rayon
20. Reduce Your Plastic Use
21. Adopt or Buy Only Captive-Bred Exotic Pets
22. Buy Rainforest-Friendly Musical Instruments
23. Adopt an Energy-Saving Mindset
24. Choose a Better Banana
25. Give Rainforest Green Gifts
26. Educate Your Children
27. Use the Power of E-mail
28. Buy Organic or Certified Sugar
29. Celebrate Rainforest Art
30. Champion Biochar for Tropical Agriculture
31. Drive an Electric Vehicle
32. Avoid Pencils Made of Tropical Wood
33. Buy Sustainably Sourced Chocolate
34. Say No to Tropical Hardwood in Public Works
35. Create a Fundraiser
36. Celebrate Rainforest Music
37. Buy Less Packaging
38. Use Tamanu Oil for Health and Beauty
39. Stop Fueling Soy
40. Give a Rainforest Presentation
41. Use Less Aluminum—Recycle More
42. Use Sustainably Harvested Medicinal Rainforest Herbs
43. Make Financial Donations
44. Choose Sustainable Rubber
45. Support a Rainforest Animal
46. Drink Fresh or Certified Orange Juice
47. Buy Rainforest-Friendly Flooring and Decking
48. Protect or Adopt an Acre
49. Champion Sustainable Coconut Packaging
50. Tell a Friend
Index
About the Author
FOREWORD
For centuries, explorers and treasure hunters have been drawn to the
world’s rainforests in search of wealth and fame. The allure of the rainforest’s
secrets has pulled thousands into the jungle to try to break the code of its many
marvels and unravel its mysteries. Lost cities of gold, advanced civilizations that
have disappeared, diamonds and mineral mining have been historic drivers of
this interest. More recently, the demand for lumber, cattle ranching, oil
exploration and soybean farming have placed unprecedented pressures on an
already diminishing rainforest. These threats beg the query, can our rainforests
survive another generation? Will tropical ecosystems pass a tipping point and not
be able to regenerate? The real question is, what is the truest value of the
rainforest to our species, and how do we realize this value in a sustainable way?
The Amazon rainforest, in particular, is our planet’s greatest natural resource.
We may have lost half of our planet’s rainforests in the last 100 years. Another
alarming statistic is that of an estimated 4 million indigenous Amazon rainforest
people living in 1900, only 200,000 remain. Only 2 percent of the Earth’s
surface remains rainforest, yet 50 percent of all plant and animal species are
represented there. It is home to more plant and animal species than any other
ecosystem on Earth. It produces almost a third of our oxygen and is the largest
climate stabilizer. Healthy rainforests absorb carbon emissions from the
atmosphere. Cutting down and burning rainforests release the stored carbon back
into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming.
There are so many medicinal and therapeutic plants in the Amazon that it is
called the “natural pharmacy to the world.” The research of Dr. James Duke has
linked thousands of beneficial compounds naturally occurring in rainforest
plants to potential benefits for the most common diseases in the developed
world. Seventy percent of all plants that have anti-cancer activity come from the
rainforest, yet only a tiny 3 percent have been scientifically studied for their
therapeutic benefits. Not only is the rainforest full of unique chemical and
nutritional compounds, there is an innate plant intelligence that resonates
through the composite of the rainforest.
We are grateful for these rainforest plants as they have substantially improved
our health in times of crisis, and we use them daily as part of our health regimen.
In the last 20 years that we have been going to the rainforest, we have seen
dramatic changes both good and bad. We are optimistic about the future because
more and more conscious people are realizing that tropical rainforests are more
valuable alive than dead.
It is not just a novel idea to have a responsible attitude about the preservation
of our rainforest. The fact is the very survival of our species is dependent on a
healthy rainforest, and we are all decision makers in our future. Every day we
vote with our money and our actions. It is simple environmental economics. For
most of us, it is easy to see the global value of the rainforest. However, when we
acknowledge the personal value we get from the rainforest, like oxygen, we
realize we each have a personal relationship with the rainforest. It’s when we
make that connection that we begin to make the personal everyday choices that
ensure we have access to that value. We appreciate the extraordinary inventory
of new therapeutic and medicinal plants that may hold the key to reversing all
degenerative disease as we know it. In the PBS documentary Return to the
Amazon, Jean-Michel Cousteau’s words, “We protect what we value,” continue
to ring true.
Recognize the value of our living rainforest. We are the guardians. Ultimately
our individual choices taken as a collective will determine its future. The real
beauty of Kim Henderson’s book is that it is so simple. Following the practical
tips and guidelines on these pages can help turn the tide toward a bright future
for our rainforests and ourselves.
Be conscious, be healthy, and thanks for being a part of the solution.
“Amazon John” Easterling,
Treasure Hunter and Founder of the Amazon Herb Company
Olivia Newton-John Easterling, First United Nations Goodwill
Ambassador for the Environment
“AMAZON JOHN” EASTERLING
Successful eco-entrepreneur and visionary leader, John Easterling founded the
Amazon Herb Company (AHC) in 1990 and serves on the board of the Amazon
