Last Wednesday I flew to Puerto Maldonado on the Rio Madre de Dios and caught my first glimpse of the devastation caused by gold mining in the rainforest.

While it was my third trip to Puerto Maldonado, it was my first time to sit next to the window looking out across the Madre de Dios region. What I saw was truly one of the saddest sights I’ve ever witnessed because of what it means for the planet we live on and what it says about so much of humanity.