The shutdown of the United States government’s international aid agency, announced in early February by Donald Trump, will not only impact global humanitarian aid. but also the environment.
A survey conducted by ((o))eco on an official U.S. government platform shows that in 2024, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) allocated $14.7 million to environmental projects in Brazil, equivalent to R$ 84 million at the current exchange rate.
According to information from ForeignAssistance.gov, the main U.S. government website for making foreign aid data publicly available, by December 19, 2024, USAID had allocated R$ 141.6 million ($24.7 million) to Brazil across 43 projects.
This amount places Brazil in 13th position in the regional ranking of nations receiving the most funding from the U.S. international aid agency in 2024. The top regional recipient was Haiti, which received $420 million.
Environment at the Top of the List
Among the ten largest allocations, six are directly related to environmental projects, such as “Tapajós para a Vida,” which received R$ 23 million ($4 million) for conservation actions and the sustainable use of protected areas in the Tapajós River Basin in the Brazilian Amazon.
Also on the list is the U.S.-Brazil partnership for combating wildfires. According to the U.S. government website, the program received R$ 19 million ($3.3 million) in 2024 to train firefighters and provide technical training for professionals on the front lines of wildfire combat.
The Fire Management and Prevention Program, executed since 2021 by Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama, in Portuguese) in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), conducted at least 51 courses and training sessions between 2021 and 2023, training more than 3,000 people, mainly Indigenous individuals, who have since acted as firefighters in their territories. The program also included experience exchanges and technical studies.
In a statement to ((o))eco, Ibama said that USAID’s shutdown “does not directly impact the fight against wildfires in Brazil, as prevention and combat efforts within national territory are financed by the federal budget, covering firefighter salaries, equipment purchases, aircraft hiring, and other expenses.”
However, the agency noted that the suspension of these activities could have consequences for cooperating parties, “as climate change affects all countries, including wildfires, for which everyone needs to be better prepared.”
In addition to conservation efforts in the Tapajós Basin and wildfire combat, other USAID-funded projects in 2024 (as listed on ForeignAssistance.gov) include:
- Integrated Indigenous Territorial Management Project – Co-designed with USAID/Brazil’s environmental office to strengthen the management capacity of ten Indigenous organizations in Roraima and Amazonas states, in Amazon biome. Project value: R$ 15 million ($2.6 million);
- Alliance of Indigenous Peoples for the Forests of Eastern Amazon: Conservation, Protection, and Restoration Activities – Supporting protection, sustainable management, biodiversity conservation, and restoration of natural resources in Indigenous lands in the Amazon. Project value: R$ 11 million ($1.9 million);
- O Assobio – A socio-biodiversity initiative fostering public-private arrangements to attract climate finance for the Amazon Biome in Mato Grosso state. Project value: R$ 8.2 million ($1.4 million);
- Biodiversity – Project to combat illegal exploitation of natural resources and control invasive species. Project value: R$ 7.7 million ($1.3 million);
- Natural Resources and Biodiversity – Project addressing illegal and corrupt exploitation of natural resources and controlling invasive species. These programs should be integrated into the Agriculture sector within the Economic Growth framework and the Conflict Mitigation and Reconciliation sector under the Peace and Security Objective, where applicable and appropriate. Project value: R$ 64,800 ($11,300);
Beyond USAID’s direct environmental funding, the agency also allocated other resources directly or indirectly related to Brazil’s environmental and climate crisis.
According to ForeignAssistance, an additional R$ 30.3 million ($5.3 million) was allocated to Brazil as “Emergency Response,” including humanitarian aid for cities severely affected by floods in Rio Grande do Sul in early 2024.
From 2020 to 2024, USAID allocated R$ 880 million ($153.83 million) to Brazil, of which R$ 294.7 million ($51.52 million) was exclusively for environmental protection projects.
Global Impact
The potential end of USAID will not only affect environmental programs in Brazil. The agency also helped establish Song Thanh National Park in Vietnam, restored coral reefs in the Seychelles, funded the creation of marine protected areas in Papua New Guinea, played a key role in creating Gabon’s national park system, and supported a tiger conservation program in Bangladesh.
USAID also provided aid for wildlife and habitat restoration in Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique, after a 16-year civil war wiped out nearly all the country’s large mammals.
According to ForeignAssistance.gov, in 2024, USAID allocated R$ 3.7 billion ($648 million) to 310 environmental protection actions or programs in 62 countries.
Until its suspension, ordered by Donald Trump in early February due to alleged — and unproven — fraud, USAID managed a budget of approximately $30 billion dedicated to humanitarian aid and development assistance in about 120 countries.
The closure of USAID and Trump’s proposal to merge the agency with the State Department still require approval from the U.S. Congress. However, funds have been frozen since February 4.
This story was originally published in Portuguese. The translation to English was done with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence, with final review by a human. For this story, the review was done by the reporter Cristiane Prizibisczki.
