With fewer than 400 individuals surviving in the wild, the Sumatran tiger continues to find refuge in Indonesia's Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, a World Heritage Site on the southern tip of Sumatra Island. But the critically endangered feline's habitat is rapidly shrinking. Illegal squatters have already converted nearly 20 percent of the 900,000-acre (356,000-hectare) park to farmland for the cultivation of coffee, pepper and other crops. And a large post-tsunami influx of immigrant settlers from the provinces of Aceh and North Sumatra has only increased pressures on the resource-rich protected area.

Despite government efforts to evict as many as 15,600 families who have built semipermanent homes within the park, the influx continues, endangering not only the

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The collapse of the Brazilian cocoa industry in the late 1980s served as a wake-up call for leading candy-maker Mars, Inc., propelling the company toward a more aggressive approach to corporate responsibility. "We realized just how susceptible the crop was to disease and pests, and that we needed to make our supply sustainable," reflects Matthias Berninger, Mars' global head of public policy. Over the last three decades, Mars' commitment to conservation and the social and economic well-being of farmers has grown exponentially. In April, Mars pledged to work toward obtaining 100 percent of its cocoa supply from certified sustainable sources by the end of the next decade. Here, Berninger talks to the Rainforest Alliance about the important decision.

Why is environmental

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Ninety Tea Farms Become Rainforest Alliance Certified

One of the largest remaining fragments of South America's Atlantic Forest is home to endangered species such as the golden lion tamarin monkey and the Brazilian rosewood tree, but it is also home to thousands of acres of tea farms. Although we often associate the production of tea with China and other Asian countries, the tea plant (Camellia sinensis) is grown commercially in many places around the world, usually where rainfall is heavy and accompanied by warm days and cool nights -- such as in the highlands of northeastern Argentina. Even though tea farming didn't begin there in earnest until the 1950s, Argentina currently exports around 110 million pounds (50 million kilograms) of tea per year, mostly to the

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Farms that meet the comprehensive standards of the Sustainable Agriculture Network (SAN) -- a coalition of international conservation NGOs -- are eligible to become Rainforest Alliance Certified^TM. The little green frog seal, stamped on everything from bags of roasted coffee beans to smoothie bottles, indicates that wildlife is conserved, the environment is protected and workers are treated well on farms where ingredients in these products are cultivated. In order to ensure that the SAN standards are consistently rigorous, holistic and clear, they are frequently reviewed and modified according to ISEAL Alliance's Code of Good Practice for Setting Social and Environmental Standards. Recently, a group of lead auditors and technical experts from the Rainforest Alliance's Africa and Asia teams

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Two years ago, the Rainforest Alliance expanded its reach to Ethiopia, where we have been working with coffee farmers to conserve the last remnants of native forests dotting the country's diverse landscape. Alex Morgan, business development manager for our sustainable agriculture program, saw first-hand the challenges we face during his recent trip to Africa. Here, he recounts the experience...



Ethiopia is a land of contrasts. Rich soils and lush lands abound in the highlands and the fields of the Rift Valley, while drought, erosion and desertification conspire to render other parts of the country infertile and inhospitable. Wild Arabica coffee originated here and still grows in native forests. But high global grain prices and skyrocketing market demand are leading many farmers to abandon...