* Peru’s government has agreed a debt-for-nature agreement with the US that will see US$19.57m of debt channelled instead into conservation. The agreement, signed by Peru’s finance minister, Alex Contreras, and the US ambassador to Peru, Lisa Kenna, enables the debt to be spent on the conservation and restoration of forests in the regions of Madre de Dios, Cusco, Ucayali, Puno, Junín, Apurímac, Huánuco, Pasco, and Loreto.