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Sebastião Salgado

Sebastião Salgado

Co-founder, Instituto Terra

Appears in 1 story

Notable Quotes

"When we began replanting, all the insects and birds and fish returned and, thanks to this increase of the trees, I was reborn—this was the most important moment." (on the personal healing power of restoration)

Stories

From barren ranch to living forest: Instituto Terra's 2.5 million tree proof-of-concept

Built World

Died May 23, 2025 in Paris at age 81

In 1998, renowned photographer Sebastião Salgado returned from documenting the Rwandan genocide to find his family's Brazilian cattle ranch stripped bare—just 0.5% of its original Atlantic Forest remained. His wife Lélia proposed something audacious: rebuild the entire ecosystem from scratch. By mid-2025, Instituto Terra had planted over 7 million trees from 293 native species, restored 2,068 springs, and transformed 1,700 acres of eroded pastureland into a forest dense enough to see from space. After Sebastião's death in May 2025, Lélia and a team of ecologists continue expanding the institute's environmental education programs, which have now reached over 88,000 people.

Updated Jan 30