We landed in Murineli a tiny village in the state of Rio de Janeiro less than 3 hours from the city of Rio de Janeiro by car. The countryside in Murineli is shaped by its former coffee plantations, which started in the late 1700 and boomed into the early 1800. Today, the landscape shows endless pastures interrupted by short stretches of dense rainforest and some fruit or vegetable plantations.

The dense rainforest Mata Atlantica is native to this region. It has been cleared for coffee plantations and later for cattle farming or other plantations. Today, cattle farming represents the most yielding way of farm production. It requires little labor for a product, which pays high prices. A great replacement for the formerly highly profitable coffee business. But cattle farming comes at a cost for the environment as it also represents the most intruding way of farming considering the balance of the ecosystem. Fruit and vegetable farming is as intruding as they are often boosted with toxic fertilizers for higher yields.

Keeping the nascent rainforest is deemed a luxury in the Mata Atlantica region. Many people have to earn their living with farms and require cleared rainforest spaces for plantation or cattle farming. The drive for maximizing profits, beyond making a living, requires even more cleared rainforest space and drives unbalanced deforestation. Additionally, fruit and vegetable plantations are treated with toxic fertilizers to yield faster and more crops.

The ultimate solution is a balanced approach of cleared rainforest farmland to support a living and a healthy share of rainforest. Achieving this equilibrium of cleared forest space and flourishing rainforest requires different measures in different areas. Some just need to maintain their existing share of rainforest, some need to reduce cattle farming for fruit or vegetable plantation. Some need to grow rainforest back. Besides balancing rainforest space in the region cattle farming should be reduced to minimum while toxic fertilizers should be banned completely.

From Rainforest Protection to Permaculture

Eventually the rainforest is an ecosystem, which should be orchestrated, holistically. The rainforest ecosystem’s health can be gauged by elements like weather, soil, water and animals. If the ecosystem is approached holistically, we at The Rainforest Club chose to strive for Permaculture on the Club’s farm.

The Rainforest Club aims to establish a permaculture in a rainforest habitat. Concepts such as agroforestry will serve The Rainforest Club as guiding principles to realize a permaculture in the Mata Atlântica.