- Renowned photographer Sebastião Salgado and his wife Lélia Wanick Salgado transformed a 600-hectare degraded family farm in Brazil into the thriving Atlantic Forest ecosystem known as Instituto Terra.
- Since 1998, the project has planted over 3 million native trees, restoring water sources and biodiversity to the Vale do Rio Doce region.
- The initiative combines environmental restoration with educational programs and sustainable agroforestry, serving as a scalable model for climate resilience and community engagement.
Origins and Vision
- Sebastião Salgado, a celebrated photographer, and Lélia Wanick Salgado established the non-profit in Aimorés, Minas Gerais, after witnessing environmental decay and human suffering abroad.
- The land, formerly a barren family property, had been devastated by decades of extractive agricultural and mining practices common in the region.
- Salgado viewed the restorative work as both a personal healing process and an urgent response to the global climate crisis.
Impact and Programs
- Ecosystem Recovery: The restored 709 hectares now support a mature "child forest" that has attracted native wildlife, including birds, insects, and mammals.
- Terra Doce Program: This agroforestry initiative promotes cacao and coffee cultivation in symbiosis with native trees, aiming to protect 4,200 natural springs over five years by planting 2 million trees.
- Education: The "Terrinhas Project" has engaged over 80,000 children and teachers, focusing on socio-environmental integration and sustainability education.
Legacy and Future
- Sebastião Salgado passed away on May 23, 2025, from leukemia; his ashes were scattered on the land he helped restore.
- The institute is now led by his son, Juliano Ribeiro Salgado, with the goal of transforming an 85,000-square-kilometer region by creating a new economic chain based on reforestation-linked agriculture.
- The project serves as a pilot model for Brazil and the world, proving that large-scale ecological restoration is possible through long-term community partnership and local empowerment.