07 Apr Armed Nerds In Combat To Preserve the Amazon

The Specialized Inspection Group (GEF) of Brazil’s environmental protection agency, has become one of Latin America’s most feared elite fighting units.  It uses cutting edge technology but also armed patrols on the ground, deep in the jungle, in some of the most lawless swaths of the Amazon.

Its creation was sparked by the surge in deforestation, climbing 29 percent between August 2015 to July 2016, destroying nearly two million acres or forest.

It is made up of former high school science teachers, environmental activists, an oceanographer, as well as former soldiers, all having to complete demanding survival courses.

Source:  Romero, Simon, A Brainy SWAT Team Patrolling the Lawless Amazon, New York Times, April 7, 2017