The Rainforest Alliance determines the impact of our work through rigorous scientific research. We are particularly interested in studying and quantifying impacts on the following areas:

• Water
• Biodiversity
• Environmental degradation
• Threatened and endangered species
• Treatment of workers
• Community health
• Competitiveness of community-based operations
• Overall costs and benefits of certification or adoption of sustainability practices

We collect standardized information, called "global indicators," from the farms, forests and tourism enterprises where we work, to examine their performance against sustainability indicators. We also cooperate with universities and research institutes to investigate particular aspects of our projects, such as the impact of certification on specific wildlife species or ecosystems. When a study concludes, we communicate key findings to collaborating businesses, donors, researchers, journalists and consumers.