In India, Amazon Will Invest $3 Million In Nature-Based Projects

(CTN News) – Amazon announced on Monday that it will invest $3 million in nature-based projects in India. The company has allocated $15 million for nature-based projects in Asia Pacific (APAC) as part of its $15 million fund.

As part of the fund’s APAC allocation, USD 3 million will be allocated to nature-based projects in India.

“For its first project, Amazon will be partnering with the Centre for Wildlife Studies (CWS) to support communities and conservation efforts in the Western Ghats, which contain more than 30 percent of India’s wildlife species, including the world’s largest population of wild Asiatic elephants and tigers,” the company stated.

According to the statement, Amazon will provide $1 million to support CWS‘ “Wild Carbon” program, which will assist 10,000 farmers in planting and maintaining one million fruit-bearing, timber and medicinal trees.

A vast forest and rich coastal environment exist in the Asia-Pacific region, however it is also highly vulnerable to climate change, biodiversity loss, and land degradation.

As a result of climate change, the region will require both large-scale and local actions – and Amazon’s Global VP for Sustainability, Kara Hurst, emphasized that the company is committed to investing in both.

The $15 million allocation draws from Amazon’s $100 million Right Now Climate Fund, which was established in 2019, to support nature conservation and restoration projects that enhance climate resilience and biodiversity while providing social and environmental benefits for communities in which they operate.

Using Amazon’s support, we are able to plan and design a program that will be self-sustaining in the long run. The farmers will receive upfront support to select tree types that serve both their livelihoods and the wildlife, in addition to technical assistance, agroforestry training, and assistance in replanting failed saplings, according to Krithi Karanth, Executive Director of CWS.

Amazon co-founded The Climate Pledge in 2019, committing to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2040 ten years in advance of the Paris climate agreement.

Over 400 companies have signed the Pledge across 55 industries and 38 countries, including nine Indian companies: BluPine Energy, CSM Technologies India, Godi, Greenko, HCL, Infosys, Mahindra Logistics, Tech Mahindra, and UPL.

As of 2022, Amazon plans to launch six utility-scale projects in India, and the company claims to be on track to power 100 percent of its global operations with renewable energy by 2025, five years ahead of the original deadline of 2030.

A total of 920 megawatts of renewable energy will be generated by three wind-solar hybrid projects in Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka, as well as three solar farms in Rajasthan.

The company has also committed to deploying 10,000 electric vehicles in its delivery fleet by 2025.

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