Medio siglo de desarrollo en la Amazonia: ¿existen esperanzas para su desarrollo sustentable?

A DESTRUIÇÃO DOS recursos naturais da Amazônia continua aumentando, especialmente o desmatamento, apesar de a retórica dos últimos 50 anos ter mudado de conquista e exploração para desenvolvimento sustentável. Entretanto, mudanças positivas são percebidas, ainda que pequenas: o crescimento da participação popular nas decisões; o Tratado de Cooperação Amazônica, que começa a dar resultados práticos; o interesse internacional melhor orientado; existem experiências bem-sucedidas e melhor documentadas sobre desenvolvimento sustentável; e muitos dos antigos mitos sobre a realidade amazônica estão sendo abandonados. O crescimento da população urbana é uma das principais mudanças percebidas. Hoje, mais de 60% de sua população é urbana e tem grande influência nas decisões políticas, ainda que não necessariamente favorável para o desenvolvimento sustentável. Neste trabalho explora-se algumas das razões pelas quais o desenvolvimento amazônico não é sustentável: entre outras, um paradigma de desenvolvimento sustentável mal definido, a persistente deficiência na identificação dos atores amazônicos e na solução de seus conflitos no planejamento regional, a fragilidade crescente das instituições públicas, a aplicação do simples crescimento econômico como estratégia dominante de desenvolvimento, o limitado acesso à educação, a desordem social. Duas ações estratégicas, que não constituem novidade, são consideradas essenciais para mudar gradativamente o padrão do desenvolvimento na região: a intensificação do uso da terra e a elevação da produtividade nas áreas já desmatadas (acima de 100 milhões de hectares na Amazônia produzem pouco ou nada); a avaliação e o pagamento em escala nacional e internacional dos serviços ambientais fornecidos pela floresta. Esses dois requisitos deverão ser acompanhados pela adoção outras estratégias bem conhecidas, como o manejo sustentável da floresta natural, o reflorestamento de áreas desmatadas não-aproveitáveis na agricultura, estabelecimento de áreas protegidas efetivamente manejadas, entre várias mais.AMAZON NATURAL resources destruction trends continues to increase, especially deforestation, despite changes in rethoric that during the last 50 years moved from conquest and exploitation to sustainable development. However, a few positive changes are noticeable: Amazon people's participation in decision making increased, the Amazon Treaty is starting to produce practical results, the international concerns are better oriented, there are more and better documented success stories to replicate and, several pervasive and prejudicial myths about the Amazon are being lost. Urban population growth is one of the principal changes in the Amazon. Over 60% of the Amazon population are urban and its influence in policy making is very high and not necessarily favorable to sustainable development. In this paper are explored some of the reasons for which development is not sustainable in the Amazon: a sustainable development paradigm ill defined and poorly understood, a persistent lack of identification of actors and their conflicts in most planning exercises, growing fragility of states to organize and provide the rules of the game for development and, of course, the application of the economic growth as dominant strategy combined with lack of education and social order, corruption and other associated evils, are briefly discussed. Two strategic actions, that are not new, are considered central to gradually change the pattern of development in the Amazon: intensification of the use of the land and productivity elevation in already deforested areas (well over 100 million hectares that currently produce very little or nothing); the valuation and payment, at national and international scale, of the environmental services of the forests. These two central requirements are coupled by several other well-known and complementary possibilities such as natural forest management; establishment and management of protected areas, redefinition of success indicators for the Amazon, ecotourism etc. Education, information and participation are essential to allow democracy to play its role in sustainable development

Investing in Biodiversity Conservation: Proceedings of a Workshop

This document presents the proceedings of a one-day Workshop on Investing in Biodiversity Conservation held at the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington, D.C., on October 28, 1996. The first part of the workshop was dedicated to the presentation of key topics on biodiversity financing by five leaders in the field. The second part of the workshop was dedicated to a discussion and exchange of ideas on the role of the IDB in investing in biodiversity conservation. Three main recommendations emerged: 1) The Bank should prepare a report on on its experience in biodiversity projects and development programs with biodiversity components; 2) A task force should be formed to work on a bio-diversity policy or strategy; 3) IDB staff should be trained to understand the biodiversity concept and its implications in project preparation and implementation.Environmental Policy, Biodiversity, Natural Resources Management

The Future of the Latin American Natural Forests

Included in this working paper is a discussion of the history of deforestation and forest degradation in Latin America and policy recommendations towards conserving natural forests. The author argues that the main opportunity to conserve natural forests may be in the recognition of and payment for the environmental services they provide, and in the production of highly priced "certified green" goods that would make sustainable forest management profitable. Lastly, this paper ends with conclusions and recommendations such as the idea that establishment and better management of strictly protected areas are the best tools to delay the loss of ecosystems and species and reforestation, along with agroforestry, restoration of degraded forests and ecotourism

IDB Investments in Brazilian Protected Areas during the 1990s

This essay attempts to document the funds invested by the IDB and its counterparts and how the resources were used in the restricted field of protected areas in Brazil, during the period 1990-1999. For this purpose, all relevant documents regarding loans, technical cooperation and small projects approved or executed since 1990 were reviewed. The goal of the exercise was to fine-tune a search on the subject of protected areas, as defined by the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and by the Brazilian legislation on the matter. On the basis of the results, the author discusses the viability of this kind of exercise, the perception of other institutions regarding IDB investments on biodiversity in Brazil and, briefly, the role of the IDB in assisting Brazil in the field of protected areas

Gestión de áreas protegidas para la conservación de la biodiversidad: Evidencias de Brasil, Honduras y Perú

El presente estudio identifica y analiza los principales problemas para la conservación y manejo de la biodiversidad a través de los sistemas nacionales de áreas protegidas, incluyendo un diagnóstico general del estado de los sistemas nacionales de áreas protegidas y priorizando los problemas que tienen mayor impacto en cuanto a la capacidad de los países para manejar sus áreas protegidas legalmente establecidas. Este trabajo provee evidencia de que las áreas protegidas no son suficientes pero son indispensables para asegurar la conservación de la diversidad biológica y que la biodiversidad es uno de los más importantes patrimonios naturales de América Latina, reflejado en el hecho de que siete de los países de la región son parte del grupo de doce países megadiversos que existen en el mundo

Humid tropical forests

Related to DAP 87-4249 under which IDRC supported the WCED to acquire and duplicate original papers, submissions, tapes and transcripts, became the depository of all original archival materials and received the right to microfiche the collection for broader disseminatio

Tropical forests and its conservation by the year two thousand : priorities for today and tomorrow for the Amazon Basin

Meeting: International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, Technical Meeting, 16th, 3-15 Nov. 1984, Madrid, ESMeeting: International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, General Assembly, 16th, 3-15 Nov. 1984, Madrid, ESRelated to DAP 87-4249 under which IDRC supported the WCED to acquire and duplicate original papers, submissions, tapes and transcripts, became the depository of all original archival materials and received the right to microfiche the collection for broader disseminatio

Conflictos socio-ambientales en unidades de conservación de América Latina

Aborda o desenvolvimento de soluções entre América Latina e Ásia acerca da gestão das unidades de conservações (UCs) devido ao crescimento de áreas protegidas