# Cash payments help Amazon communities protect rainforest

> A two-year pilot giving Indigenous Peruvians £2 a day led almost 90% to adopt conservation practices, suggesting unconditional income can support forest protection.
- Title: Cash payments help Amazon communities protect rainforest
- Summary: A two-year pilot giving Indigenous Peruvians £2 a day led almost 90% to adopt conservation practices, suggesting unconditional income can support forest…
- Keywords: amazon rainforest, peru, asháninka, unconditional basic income, indigenous peoples, conservation, cool earth, university of bath, news, world, Cash, payments
- Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/environment/2026/oct/20/unconditional-basic-income-amazon-rainforest-peru-study
- Published: 2026-10-20T12:00:36+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: amazon rainforest, peru, asháninka, unconditional basic income, indigenous peoples, conservation, cool earth, university of bath, news, world
## Cash pilot in Peru's Amazon
The UK charity Cool Earth gave 211 people in three Asháninka communities six cash transfers of one thousand thirty-two Peruvian soles each, roughly two pounds a day, over two years.
## Almost 90% adopted green practices
Researchers from the University of Bath found almost ninety percent of participants adopted environmentally beneficial practices including collective reforestation, restoration of water sources and reduced forest burning.
## Food security improved dramatically
Households unable to afford nutritious food fell from seventy-three percent to twenty-six percent. Researchers noted this reduction in food insecurity can prevent people turning to logging or environmental crimes.
## Migration to cities dropped sharply
The share of participants forced to leave home to find work fell from forty-three percent to eighteen percent. Researchers said this allowed more people to remain and protect the forest.
## Security enables forest protection
Dr Nick Langridge, co-author of the report, said the findings suggest that when communities have greater security and autonomy, they are better able to protect the ecosystems they depend on.

> When communities have greater security and autonomy, they are better able to protect the ecosystems they depend on.
## First unconditional scheme in Amazon
The project was drawn up with local women's groups and is the first to offer unconditional basic income to an Indigenous community in the Amazon, contrasting with previous schemes that had strings attached.
## Researchers call for larger studies
The authors acknowledge wider research is needed. Their two-year study covered little over five hundred hectares and did not measure vegetation or soil changes, but early results have excited the cash-for-conservation network.
## Key takeaway

A pilot project giving Indigenous Peruvians unconditional cash payments of £2 a day led almost 90% to adopt environmentally beneficial practices, suggesting direct payments can help protect rainforests.