The Copaíba Environmental Association's mission is to conserve and restore the Atlantic Forest of the Peixe and Camanducaia river basins. So that this mission can be accomplished, the recovery of the forests through the planting of seedlings of native trees is one of the main actions of the institution.

The result of this work is quite readable, considering areas that for many decades were and continue to be degraded, mainly due to inadequate land use or lack of correct management of crops and pastures.

The work of “recovering” forests has the objective, initially, to recover the ecological processes that the native forest performs and, from there, contribute to the protection of the soil, vegetation, wild fauna, water and also the quality of life.

For over 10 years forests have been forming with Copaíba's work and the results are measured through the monitoring carried out in these areas. These are follow-ups carried out by the institution's technical team that assess the development of the seedlings and the area as a whole.

An important indicator that the area is showing good development is the presence of wild animals. This is a positive result of forest restoration. “It is a great satisfaction to see that the wild fauna is returning to the areas that we are recovering. Families of monkeys, buckcats, maned wolves, otters, as well as countless bird species have already been sighted in these areas. A sign that we are on the right path”, comments Ana Paula Balderi, coordinator of forest restoration at Copaíba.

Copaíba understands that there is still a lot of work to be done in the region, but it is through it, in partnership with several landowners, that many forests are already playing their role in nature and thus contributing to the conservation of biodiversity.