800-year-old farmers could teach us how to protect the Amazon

In the face of mass deforestation of the Amazon, recent findings indicate that we could learn from its earliest inhabitants who managed their farmland sustainably. Research shows for the first time that indigenous people, living in the savannas around the Amazonian forest, farmed without using fire. Instead early inhabitants practiced 'raised-field' farming, which involved constructing small agricultural mounds with wooden tools. These raised fields provided better drainage, soil aeration and moisture retention: ideal for an environment that experiences both drought and flooding. Read more