The Paraguayan Chaco is a diverse biome of dry forests, wetlands and savannas rich with wildlife that is also home to the Ayoreo Totobiegosode, the last uncontacted peoples in Latin America outside the Amazon. In 2020, an investigation by London-based NGO Earthsight exposed how the Chaco’s forests, which are being cleared faster than any other forest on earth, are often destroyed illegally by cattle ranching firms supplying leather to some of Europe’s leading car manufacturers.
Despite this news being picked up by Paraguayan and international media, the crimes largely continued unabated. Then in 2021, Mongabay partnered with Earthsight to continue investigating the issue, and over the course of multiple years, Mongabay published fresh reports and covered Earthsight’s findings, amplifying both the message and its reach. This combined and persistent effort contributed to leather being added to the draft EU deforestation regulation (EUDR), with the provision of a mandatory public list of non-compliant actors to strengthen deterrence, and the absence of a ‘green lane’ for flawed certification schemes to serve as proof of compliance.
