Joe Biden will make history as the first sitting U.S. president to visit the Amazon rainforest during a brief stop in Manaus, Brazil, on Sunday. This visit comes at a time when the U.S. is expected to reduce its commitment to fighting climate change under the incoming administration of Donald Trump.
The vast Amazon rainforest, roughly the size of Australia, stores significant amounts of the world’s carbon dioxide, a key greenhouse gas driving climate change, even as it faces rapid deforestation.
During his visit, Biden is expected to take an aerial tour of part of the world’s largest tropical rainforest, meet with local and indigenous leaders, and visit an Amazonian museum, all in an effort to emphasize his commitment to preserving the region.
The Biden administration announced plans last year to contribute $500 million to the Amazon Fund, the largest international effort to preserve the rainforest, primarily financed by Norway.
As of now, the U.S. government has contributed $50 million, according to a statement from its embassy in Brazil in July. The U.S. has also committed to continuing discussions with Congress to secure the remaining funding for the Amazon Fund and related initiatives through 2028.
“It’s significant for a sitting president to visit the Amazon. This shows a personal commitment from the president,” said Suely Araújo, former head of Brazil’s environmental protection agency and public policy coordinator with the nonprofit Climate Observatory. “That said, we can’t expect concrete results from this visit.”
She expressed doubts that any “single penny” would go to the Amazon Fund come January.
The Trump administration is unlikely to prioritize the Amazon or any climate-related issues. The Republican president-elect has already stated his intention to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement once again, a global pact aimed at preventing catastrophic climate change, after Biden had rejoined it.
Trump has referred to climate change as a “hoax” and has vowed to eliminate energy efficiency regulations put in place by the Biden administration.
The Amazon is the world’s largest tropical rainforest, home to Indigenous communities and 10% of Earth’s biodiversity. It also plays a crucial role in regulating moisture across South America. About two-thirds of the Amazon is located within Brazil, and scientists warn that its destruction poses a catastrophic threat to the planet.
The forest has endured two years of historic droughts, which have dried up waterways, isolated thousands of riverine communities, and hindered their ability to fish. These conditions have also fueled wildfires, which have burned an area larger than Switzerland and caused widespread smoke, affecting cities both near and far.
When Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took office last year, he marked a clear shift in environmental policy from his predecessor, far-right Jair Bolsonaro. Bolsonaro had prioritized agribusiness expansion over forest protection, weakening environmental agencies and allowing deforestation to surge to a 15-year high.
Lula has committed to achieving “zero deforestation” by 2030, even though his term ends in 2026. According to official data released last week, deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon dropped by 30.6% in the 12 months leading up to July, bringing it to its lowest level in nine years.
In the 12-month period through July, the Amazon lost 6,288 square kilometers (2,428 square miles) of forest, roughly the size of Delaware. However, this data does not account for the increase in destruction seen this year, which will only be reflected in next year’s figures.
Despite progress in reducing deforestation, Lula’s government has faced criticism from environmentalists for supporting projects that could harm the region. These include paving a highway through an old-growth area, which could lead to increased logging, as well as plans for oil drilling near the mouth of the Amazon River and the construction of a railway to transport soy to Amazonian ports.
Biden is visiting the Amazon as part of a six-day trip to South America, marking his first visit to the continent as president.
On Sunday morning, he concluded a visit to Lima, Peru, where he participated in the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit and met with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
After his brief stop in Manaus, Biden will head to Rio de Janeiro for this year’s Group of 20 leaders summit.