Dom Phillips was killed researching a book on the Amazon. Three years later, his friends finished it

By Fabiano Maisonnave with AP

Published on 29/05/2025 - 16:01 GMT+2

After British journalist Dom Phillips was killed while researching an eager book connected really to protect nan world’s largest rainforest, friends vowed to decorativeness nan project. Three years later, their task is complete.

“How to Save nan Amazon” published yesterday (28 May) successful Brazil and nan UK up of its US merchandise connected 10 June. It was pieced together by chap journalists who immersed themselves successful Phillips’ notes, outlines and nan fistful of chapters he’d already written. 

The resulting book pairs Phillips’ ain penning pinch others’ contributions successful a powerful introspection of nan origin for which he gave his life.

In summation to nan halfway group who led nan activity connected finishing nan book, different colleagues and friends helped to edit chapters, including AP journalists Fabiano Maisonnave and David Biller.

What happened to Dom Phillips?

Phillips, who had been a regular contributor to The Guardian newspaper, was taking 1 of nan last reporting trips planned for his book erstwhile he was gunned down by fishermen connected 5 June 2022, successful occidental Amazon’s Javari Valley. 

Also killed was Bruno Pereira, a Brazilian master connected Indigenous tribes who had made enemies successful nan region for defending nan section communities from intruding fishermen, poachers and forbidden golden miners. 

Their deaths made headlines astir nan world. Nine group person been indicted successful nan killings.

“It was conscionable a horrifying, really sad moment. Everybody was trying to think: How tin you woody pinch thing for illustration this? And nan book was there,” said Jonathan Watts, an Amazon-based biology writer for The Guardian who co-authored nan foreword and 1 of nan chapters.

With nan blessing of Phillips’ widow, Alessandra Sampaio, a group of 5 friends agreed to transportation nan task forward. The group led by Watts besides included Andrew Fishman, nan Rio-based president of The Intercept Brasil; Phillips’ agent, Rebecca Carter; David Davies, a workfellow from his days successful London arsenic a euphony journalist; and Tom Hennigan, Latin America analogous for The Irish Times.

“It was a measurement to not conscionable consciousness atrocious astir what had happened, but to get connected pinch something. Especially because truthful galore of Dom’s friends are journalists,” Watts said. “And what you autumn backmost connected is what you cognize best, which is journalism.”

Unfinished activity researching rainforest solutions

By nan clip of his death, Phillips had travelled extensively crossed the Amazon and had completed an preamble and astir 4 of nan 10 planned chapters. He besides near down an outline of nan remaining chapters, pinch different degrees of detail, and galore pages of handwritten notes, immoderate of them hardly legible.

“I deliberation it’s adjacent to opportunity moreover Dom didn’t yet cognize what he would do precisely successful those chapters,” Watts said.

Phillips was searching for hope. He promised his editors a character-driven recreation book successful which readers would get to cognize a wide-ranging formed of group surviving successful nan area, “all of whom cognize and understand nan Amazon intimately and person innovative solutions for nan millions of group who unrecorded there.”

The group led by Watts selected writers for nan remaining chapters, pinch subjects ranging from a bioeconomy inaugural successful Brazil’s Acre authorities to world backing for rainforest preservation. 

Indigenous leader Beto Marubo of nan Javari Valley was recruited to co-write an afterword. The squad besides launched a successful crowdfunding run to salary for much reporting trips.

Among nan group’s challenges was ensuring that nan book reflected a governmental displacement successful Brazil’s attack to nan Amazon successful nan years since Phillips’ death. Most of Phillips’ investigation was done during nan word of right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro, arsenic Brazil’s Amazon deforestation reached a 15-year precocious successful 2021. 

The gait of demolition slowed aft Bolsonaro’s 2022 conclusion by leftist leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Fragments of dream and grim statistic successful nan Amazon

Throughout nan vanished book’s much than 300 pages, fragments of dream operation pinch grim realities. 

In Chapter 2, “Cattle Chaos,” Phillips notes that 16 per cent of Brazil’s Amazon has already been converted to pasture. Even a husbandman who has go a exemplary for successfully expanding productivity without clearing astir of his onshore is criticised for his wide usage of fertilisers.

In his section connected bioeconomy, journalist Jon Lee Anderson visits a reforestation inaugural wherever Benki Piyãko, an Ashaninka leader, promotes biology restoration coupled pinch ayahuasca curen and a food farm. But nan seasoned newsman doesn’t spot really it tin beryllium scalable and reproducible fixed man-made threats and ambiance change.

Later successful nan chapter, he quotes Marek Hanusch, a German economist for nan World Bank, arsenic saying: “At nan extremity of nan day, deforestation is simply a macroeconomic choice, and truthful agelong arsenic Brazil’s maturation exemplary is based connected agriculture, you’re going to spot description into nan Amazon.”

In nan foreword, nan group of 5 organizers authorities that “Like Dom, nary of america was nether immoderate illusion that our penning would prevention nan Amazon, but we could surely travel his lead successful asking nan group who mightiness know.”

But successful this book stained by humor and dim hope, location is different message, according to Watts: “The astir important point is that this is each astir solidarity pinch our friend and pinch publicity successful general.”