Agricultural School Stands as a Green Island in Maranhão's Most Deforested City

In southern Maranhao, Balsas has become the second most deforested city in Brazil, behind only Sao Desiderio (BA), according to MapBiomas. The expansion of soybean and corn crops has turned the Cerrado into vast cleared areas and increased greenhouse gas emissions in the region. Surrounded by monocultures, the Rio Peixe Family Agricultural School (Efarp) endures as a green island. On a 2,000-hectare settlement, teachers and students grow pesticide-free food, raise bees and fish, and test agroecological farming, agroforestry, and sustainable irrigation techniques. The institution, maintained by a parents-and-teachers association, aims to show that it is possible to produce while keeping the Cerrado standing. "The agroforestry system allows the soil to remain fertile and the springs to stay alive," explains director Antonio Carlos de Lima, 51. In recent years, residents have reported rising heat, irregular rainfall, and a decrease in water resources. Streams that once flowed year-round have dried up, and species such as rheas and capybaras have disappeared. The states Environmental Secretariat (Sema) says it is investigating complaints and has promoted the restoration of more than 118,000 hectares of forest. The school, which earns up to R$40,000 ($7,000) a year from selling its surplus produce, trains young people from rural communities to confront the climate crisis and strengthen family farmingone of the last barriers against deforestation in Maranhaos Cerrado.