When we launched Sky Rainforest Rescue, our partnership with WWF, back in 2009, we set some really ambitious targets. 

Our goal was to help keep one billion trees standing in the Amazon – an area roughly the size of Belgium, in the north western state of Acre – through a range of conservation work designed to engage with local people.

As the partnership draws to a close, it’s time to reflect on what has been achieved. Over the past 6 years, we’ve raised over £9 million - £5 million donated by Sky customers, employees and the public and a further £4 million match funded by Sky. That’s a huge sum, and we’re incredibly proud of what the partnership with WWF UK, WWF Brazil and the Acre state government  has achieved.

As a direct result of the work we’ve done, local people are earning a better living for their families. One and a half thousand farming families have learned new ways of keeping their soil fertile, reducing the need to cut down trees to make space for crops. 

The project has also helped to improve the market conditions and price for wild rubber, a sustainable resource that can be harvested from the rainforest without harming trees. And the work on the ground in Brazil didn’t stop there, as we ran a schools programme to raise awareness of environmental issues amongst the next generation of Acre farmers.

Not only are those billion trees still standing in Acre, we’ve saved 3.7m tonnes of carbon emissions, and deforestation has been reduced by 25 per cent within the project area.

But we knew we could do more. Being in the TV business, we were uniquely placed to bring to life the value of the rainforest to people here in the UK and Ireland. Over the lifetime of Sky Rainforest Rescue we have aired over 12 weeks of environment-themed programming, from Flintoff’s Road To Nowhere to our most recent commission, Richard Hammond’s Jungle Quest, which has just aired on Sky 1.

We’ve also brought the rainforest to life in places as diverse as the Eden Project in Cornwall, to Sky retail stands in shopping centres. And, as in Brazil, we’ve spread the word to the next generation, with 80,000 primary school children having taken part in our ‘I Love Amazon’ Schools initiative.

Through the partnership we’ve inspired and engaged people on the issues of climate change and have given 7.3 million people an increased understanding of deforestation.

Although the project is coming to an end, the funds we raised will continue to support conservation projects in Brazil and other parts of the Amazon, where WWF is continuing its work to protect the rainforest. 

At Sky, we remain committed to minimising our environmental impact and improving the sustainability of our products and services. We’ll also continue to make ground-breaking environmental programmes and will work with WWF both on our strategy and to inspire consumers to take action on climate change.

Sky Rainforest Rescue has been a unique, challenging and ambitious project striving to make a difference to the enormous issue of climate change and we are incredibly proud of what we have achieved over the last six years. Deforestation and climate change are one of the great challenges that our world faces, but with this project we believe we've been part of the journey towards success.