Posted by Rachel
The Secretary of Science & Technology of Tocantins state, along with research groups from the states of Amazonas, Pará, and Maranhão are launching a R$6.9 million study to examine the cosmetic properties of Amazon fruits and plants, including the andiroba, copaíba, castanha and babaçu. 
The study intends to create a network of groups that will identify the best ingredients for products like soaps, shampoo, and lotions. The organizers hope to bring scientists together with researchers throughout the Amazon to work on the study.
The other purpose of the study is to eventually bring profits to the people of the Amazon, since products are often sold or exported as primary materials rather than finished goods. Researchers hope the study will enable small businesses to create Amazon-based cosmetics and sell the goods directly.
There are already several companies that make cosmetics with Amazon fruits and natural ingredients. Here are your best bets:
- Natura: One of the best, if not the best for Amazon cosmetics, this Brazilian-based company has a wide variety of products and ingredients. The Ekos line is especially good, which uses a variety of Amazon fruits, like cupuaçu, pitanga, and castanha do brasil.
- Granado: A Rio-based cosmetics company, they use both Amazon and foreign ingredients in their simple and excellent products.
- Amazon Herb Co: This American-based company sells cleansers and creams with Amazon ingredients.
- Brazilian Beauty Products: Also American-based, this company sells lotions and soaps using a variety of Amazon fruits, like guaraná and açaí.
Posted by Rachel
Brazilian engineer Otoniel Duarte has made an important discovery during a study in the northern state of 
Roraima: he found that a species of Amazon palm tree, the palmeira inajá, is capable of producing oil that can be used for biofuel.
The inajá palm is a close relative of the dende palm, native to Africa, which can produce up to 5,000 liters of oil per hectar. Though the inajá isn’t as productive–it only produces 3,500 liters per hectar–it can be grown all over the Amazon basin. Not only does the palm tree produce oil, but it is also advantageous for the environment, since it is a source of food for birds and mammals. Also, it grows best in areas with lots of light, so deforested areas are ideal for planting the tree.
As a result, the tree could serve as a solution for farmers who could use the inajá as an alternative crop and could cease deforesting activities. The tree is already planted in plots by cattle ranchers, to provide shade and food for the cattle.
For more information about the discovery, see the Embrapa site here.
Posted by Rachel
Let’s take a look at headlines from this week related to the environment and the Amazon.
Posted by Rachel
This week, the Brazilian government released a list of endangered animals, and the report shows that the 
number of endangered species has tripled in only two decades. The Minister of the Environment, Carlos Minc, points to deforestation and overdevelopment caused by industry and agriculture as the culprits.
The list includes 489 new species, including the blue whale, the albatross and the northeastern uru. The complete list includes 627 animals, but fortunately, 79 species were taken off the 1989 list. The government blames illegal loggers and ranchers, and claims it has been unable to stop rapid deforestation.
Also, animal trafficking in Brazil is a a billion dollar industry, and also plays a role. The majority of the species in danger of exintinction live in the Amazon and the Pantanal, the regions most affected by development.
Posted by Rachel
Brazilian indigenous leader Almir Suruí received an award from the International Society of Human Rights 
this week in Geneva, Switzerland for his work in the Amazon. The leader of the Suruí tribe located on a reservation in Rondônia state, Almir is also the coordinator for the Etno-Ambiental da Coordenação das Organizações Indígenas da Amazônia Brasileira (Coiab), an indigenous non-profit organization that seeks to protect human rights and the environment in the Amazon.
As a community leader, Almir has achieved success with important parternships and courageous acts. He denounced the OAS for illegal logging in the Amazon, which later lead to death threats against him. He partnered with Google, which is now mapping the part of the Amazon where he lives to help protect against deforestation. He also partnered with American NGO Forest Trends, which helps recuperate deforested land.
Almir is proud of the award, which in the past was given to the likes of the Dalai Lama, and hopes the prize will help him continue fighting to protect the Amazon.
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