Can Brazil’s protected areas survive the climate crisis?

In Brazil, a country famous for its ecological riches, a pioneering project is working to prepare nature reserves for the climate crisis, in its most threatened biomes. The effort aims to help forests, animals, rivers — and the people who depend on them — endure intensifying climate extremes like floods, wildfires, and prolonged droughts.

From national parks to private reserves, Brazil’s conservation areas are vital sanctuaries for endangered species and traditional populations, such as small farmers and extractivist communities. These protected lands also store vast amounts of carbon, making them essential allies in the global fight against climate change.

But as the climate crisis accelerates, these natural defenses are under increasing pressure.

“Without these conservation units, the climate crisis would be much worse”, says André Zecchin, a biologist who manages the Salto Morato Private Natural Heritage Reserve (RPPN), in southern Brazil’s Atlantic Forest.

Zecchin has witnessed firsthand how climate extremes are altering even protected landscapes. Salto Morato and Serra do Tombador — a Cerrado reserve in central Brazil — have faced more frequent and intense floods and wildfires in recent years.

Climate-smart conservation

A team of scientists and conservationists is working to make these areas more resilient. Their strategy is to integrate climate adaptation into everyday reserves management.

Led by the Federal University of Paraná (UFPR) in partnership with Brazil’s federal biodiversity agency (ICMBio) and supported by the Boticário Group Foundation, the project maps climate risks, engages local communities, and pilots nature-based solutions to reduce vulnerabilities.

“We’re designing actions that range from better fire control and river restoration to local communication systems and land-use planning”, says Eduardo Vedor, the project’s lead scientist and a postdoctoral researcher in territorial planning.

The ultimate goal is to create a roadmap to help other protected areas across Brazil adapt to climate extremes — one that could be scaled across Latin America and beyond.

WhatsApp and wildfires

Fire prevention has taken innovative and low-cost forms. In Serra do Tombador, wildfires are now monitored and contained with the help of a WhatsApp group that connects residents, local farmers, and firefighting brigades.

“There hasn’t been a major wildfire in the region for three years”, says Zecchin. “That’s the power of involving communities in shaping climate adaptation plans”.

Controlled burns, strategic firebreaks, and removal of invasive grasses like brachiaria also form part of the reserve’s fire management toolkit.

Flooding rivers

In Salto Morato, extreme rainfall causes frequent flooding, affecting both biodiversity and neighboring farmers who depend on the river for water and transport. Tourism – another key income source – is also impacted when access roads are submerged.

Solutions under consideration include constructing flood retention basins and reconnecting the river to its historic path, which was altered decades ago by cattle ranching.

“Previous restoration focused on ecology, not landscape”, explains Vedor (UFPR). “Realigning the river could allow water to remain longer in the reserve, reducing environmental and economic losses”.

Biodiversity challenge

Climate adaptation is not just about landscapes — it’s also about wildlife conservation. For Brazil’s rare and endemic species, the stakes are high.

The black-faced lion tamarin (Leontopithecus caissara), which only lives in two coastal parks, could be wiped out if its limited habitat is altered by climate extremes.

Equally vulnerable are tiny frogs from the Brachycephalus genus, restricted to mountaintops in southern Brazil. “Just a one-degree rise in temperature could drive many of them extinct”, says Vedor.

Because each species responds differently to climate shifts, the project takes a tailored approach — mapping risk, identifying priorities, and creating ecological corridors so species can migrate to safer areas.

National adaptation blueprint

The project’s first phase focuses on two private reserves: Salto Morato in the Atlantic Forest and Serra do Tombador in the Cerrado biome. Combined, they cover nearly 9,600 hectares and serve as testing grounds for climate-adaptive conservation strategies.

The broader vision includes developing climate adaptation plans for at least 12 protected areas across Brazil’s six major biomes, producing a replicable methodology, in collaboration with ICMBio, that can be implemented nationwide and presenting an initial framework at COP30, the UN Climate Conference in Belém (Brazil), in late 2025.

ICMBio is also conducting its own assessments in key ecosystems like the Amazon, Pantanal, and southern Brazil — feeding valuable data into the national effort.

“Extreme climate events are now the norm, not the exception”, says Cláudia Sacramento, coordinator of climate emergencies at ICMBio. “Protected area management must evolve to reflect that reality”.

In a country where nearly 30% of land is under some form of protection, adapting protected areas to climate extremes is not only about conservation — it’s about securing water supplies, rural livelihoods, tourism, and public safety.

“Nature holds the key to confronting the climate crisis”, says Zecchin. “And protected areas are our front line”.