Every minute, an area larger than three football pitches of Amazon forest is lost. It’s a statistic that paints a tragic picture for not just the indigenous people of the Amazon, but a giant problem for the world in the fight against global warming.

Sky and WWF have joined forces and embarked on a challenging project to save over 1 billion trees in the Acre area of the Amazon by helping protect 3 million hectares of rainforest from deforestation – an area roughly the size of Belgium.

One of the startling facts is that deforestation contributes to around a fifth of the worlds green house gas emissions. Each tree can suck about 12Kg of carbon dioxide, but when these are cut down all the CO2 is released back into the atmosphere.

The supermodel Lily cole has just helped launch the campaign from the surroundings of Kew Gardens.

It’s hard to appreciate the importance of the rainforest because it seems so far away but it’s vital to the survival of the planet as we know it. The destruction of the rainforest is having a huge impact on our climate and on the millions of animal and plant species and the millions of people who live there. It’s important we act now, so help make a difference by donating just £10 and help save 500 trees. -Lily Cole

Sky Rainforest Rescue will help to tackle the problem by doing two things:

1. to help local farmers adopt farming practices that reduce pressure on forestland.
2. to set up a fund to support local communities – including indigenous peoples, rubber tappers and farmers – to preserve the forest, making it worth more to conserve trees than chop them down.

WWF with be working on the ground with the Acre State Government to help implement the project.

For every £10 raised Sky will match the amount in effect doubling the donation and £10 will protect 500 trees. The goal is to raise £4 Million so your help is crucial. It’s time to take on the challenge, please join with us to help support Rainforest Rescue.

For more information and to donate please go to http://rainforestrescue.sky.com