Amazon on Monday announced it would be allocating $15 million from its $100 million Right Now Climate Fund for nature-based solutions in the Asia Pacific region. Of this, the first $3 million will support nature-based projects in India. For its first project in India, Amazon will work with the Centre for Wildlife Studies (CWS), which will receive $1 million in funding for its 'Wild Carbon' programme that will support 10,000 farmers to plant and maintain a million fruit-bearing, timber and medicinal trees.

Amazon and CWS will work together to support the conservation efforts and communities in the Western Ghats, which is home to over 30 percent of the country's wildlife species and is also a World Heritage Site. It also includes the world's largest population of tigers and Asiatic elephants.

Amazon said the contribution would enable CWS to partner with 2,000 family farms to plant 300,000 trees over the next three years, which will help reduce man-animal conflict as it will help expand land area for animals. The area will create natural buffer zones and also bring in higher-value trees for farmers when compared to other subsistence crops, the company said.

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CWS will also use the funds to develop monitoring systems using remote sensing and drones and conduct on-ground surveys to verify the programme's outcomes.

"By partnering with and incentivising farmers to be part of the solution, we will be able to facilitate buffer habitats for tigers, elephants and other endangered species,” said Dr Krithi Karanth, Executive Director of CWS.

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Karanth said the farmers would receive upfront support to select the tree types that serve both the wildlife and their livelihoods. They will also receive agroforestry training, technical assistance and support to replant the failed saplings.

Amazon's Right Now Climate Fund was set up in 2019 for restoration projects that enhance biodiversity and climate resilience and to support nature conservation, while driving environmental and social benefits in communities where they operate.

Amazon's Global VP for sustainability Kara Hurst said the Asia-Pacific region is home to vast forests and has rich coastal environments, however, it is also vulnerable to biodiversity loss, land degradation and climate change.

"To protect the region from the impacts of climate change and preserve biodiversity, we will need both large-scale and local action – and we’re committed to investing in both," Hurst said.

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