World Rainforest Day: A Song for the Forests That Give Us Life
World Rainforest Day: A Song for the Forests That Give Us Life
Every year on June 22nd, World Rainforest Day invites people around the globe to remember something simple but urgent: rainforests are not distant places. They are living systems that help sustain life on Earth.
Rainforests cover only about 6% of Earth’s land surface, but they are home to more than half of all life on land. Tropical rainforests contain about two-thirds of mammal species and three-quarters of bird species.
Rainforests are also living pharmacies. Many medicines have come from rainforest plants, and scientists believe many more potential discoveries remain hidden in these ecosystems. Britannica describes rainforests as some of the most species-rich ecosystems on Earth.
Most important rainforests in the world
The Amazon Rainforest — the largest rainforest on Earth, spread across Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. It is essential for biodiversity, freshwater, rainfall patterns, and climate regulation.
The Congo Basin Rainforest — the second-largest tropical rainforest on Earth, located in Central Africa. It is home to gorillas, bonobos, forest elephants, and millions of people, and is one of the world’s most important carbon sinks.
The rainforests of Southeast Asia and New Guinea — home to orangutans, tree kangaroos, birds of paradise, and some of the most unique species on Earth. They are also among the most threatened by logging, agriculture, and palm oil expansion.
Temperate rainforests, like those found in parts of the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, Chile, New Zealand, and Tasmania, are cooler than tropical rainforests but still shaped by heavy rainfall, mosses, old-growth trees, and rich ecosystems. National Geographic notes that temperate rainforests are usually found in coastal, mountainous areas in mid-latitudes
They are also home to millions of people, including Indigenous communities whose cultures, languages, wisdom, and ways of life are deeply connected to the land. For generations, many of these communities have protected the forests, rivers, and biodiversity that the whole world depends on.
These facts help us understand the importance of rainforests. But understanding is only the first step. To truly protect something, we also have to feel connected to it.
That is where music can play such a powerful role.
A song can travel where statistics often cannot. It can move across languages, borders, and cultures, helping people feel connected to a cause that may seem far away but is actually part of all of our lives. Through music, we can celebrate the beauty of the natural world, raise awareness about what is at risk, and invite people to care, share, and take action.
With “Acontecer” Song Around The World, featuring Manu Chao, Dani Lança, Alexandre Carlo, and musicians from across the globe, Playing For Change is helping carry a message of love and protection for the Amazon, our planet, and the people who defend it.
We are proud to partner with Amazon Watch, an organization that works to protect the Amazon rainforest and advance the rights of Indigenous peoples throughout the Amazon Basin. Together, we hope this song can help amplify their efforts and inspire our global community to learn more, raise their voices, and stand with those protecting the forests that give life to us all.
This World Rainforest Day, we invite you to listen, share, and take action — for the forests, rivers, skies, and the future we all share.
Learn more about our rainforests, the people dedicating their life to protect them, and how you can take action:
