Forests Stories

Many wood products in American homes—from the kitchen table to hardwood floors—come from the same forested areas in Africa where elephants, rhinos, lions and other magnificent species roam wild. Few purchasers know that the wood from these forests is illegal. It was harvested, transported, processed, bought or sold in violation of national laws.

The world’s most popular vegetable oil—palm oil—is produced in tropical rain forests everywhere. While it can be produced sustainably, palm oil made with conventional production methods can lead to unchecked agricultural expansion that threatens forests and wildlife.

How indigenous communities, government agencies, nonprofits and businesses work together to stop the clearing of forests

How can we map deforestation and forest degradation in a way that distinguishes between a functioning forest and a simple group of trees?

As Bhutan’s fortunes rise, its natural and cultural heritage rest in the balance.

Palm oil plantations and illegal logging drive habitat loss

Increasingly, people are repurposing wood products—rendering barn siding into floorboards and shaping pallets into furniture, all without logging another tree.

Eighty percent of the world’s known terrestrial plant and animal species can be found in forests. Cool fact: a square kilometer of forest may be home to more than 1,000 species. Yet forests are disappearing at an alarming rate—18.7 million acres of forests annually, equivalent to 27 soccer fields every minute. Check out these species that hug trees.

Trees are cut down at a rapid rate to meet the demand for products we all use. Some are products that often are on our weekly shopping lists, such as toilet paper, diapers and tissues. What if we used something other than newly-harvested trees to create these products?

Which traits of mountain gorillas might allow them to tolerate or respond to rapidly changing climate conditions, and how can WWF help?

The sounds and silences of floating down the Amazon

When you see that symbol, you don’t have to wonder whether pristine forests were destroyed to make the product or whether the workers wielding chainsaws were paid a living wage. Because when you see the FSC logo, you know the product can be traced back to a company that has been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

Journey into the world’s largest tropical forest—and uncover one of the biggest conservation initiatives the world has ever seen.

Dendrochronologist Kathelyn Paredes Villanueva sheds light on Bolivia’s forests, one tree ring at a time

It is humbling to think how little attention we give to the Amazon, despite its importance to the stability of the Earth's climate and the incredible array of life that resides there.

WWF is working to reduce deforestation in Borneo through promoting Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification of wood and paper products.