A River Runs Through It

The Congo River Basin includes six countries and covers approximately 3.7 million square kilometers, making it the world's second-largest rainforest basin behind the Amazon. Like the Amazon, in practical terms, it is vital to the health of the planet. Also like the Amazon, scientists and conservationists worry that the Basin's ecology could tip if its rainforests are seriously degraded.



Unlike the Amazon, however, the immediate threat to the ecological integrity of the Congo Basin is not large-scale agriculture, but the demands of the Green Transition, since the region seems to hold vast reserves of minerals and rare earths. Could the rush to “electrify everything” lead to the destruction of the Congo rainforest?



This week, we have the opportunity for a conversation with someone who is deeply invested in trying to guide the countries of the Congo toward a positive future. Jaap van der Waarde has worked for the last two decades in the Congo Basin and is now the World Wildlife Fund's Conservation Director for the region. He spoke with New Thinking for a New World in his personal capacity.



What do you think?