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Primary goal of the
mission:
The objective of Mission 2006 consists of several parts. Over the
course of the fall semester we must try to develop a way to
characterize and monitor the well-being
of the Amazon Basin Rainforest Ecosystem, in other words, understand the
fragile and complex
relationships between species, and
devise a set of practical strategies to ensure its preservation.
This goal will be presented in 4 steps:
definition of a healthy rainforest,
background of the Amazon, our plan, and methods of monitoring.
After much discussion, the students of Mission 2006 divided into nine groups
which would concentrate on specific aspects of the
project. Later a collaboration
of ideas would form the final production. These groups include Public
Relations (Legal and Political),
Flora, Fauna, Land, Water, Air,
Alternative Development Strategy, Systems Interaction, and Socioeconomic.
Each team was then responsible for
understanding their subject matter
relating to the Amazon Basin Rainforest. I became a member of the
Socioeconomic team (Team 10) and it was
our job to study the economy of
the area and handle the financial aspect of the plan (finding grants and
allotting it to the various teams
adequately).
Some aspects we decided
the Socioeconomic Team should analyze:
Tourism-ways to bring people in (is safety an issue?)
Brazilian populations (demographics)
Indigenous People?s perspective on the rainforest-how important?
Ways people can benefit the rainforest
What use does the Brazilian government and international companies have
with the
Rainforest?
What substitutes can there be for occupations which ?require? the destruction
of the
rainforest?
Some of our objectives
are:
Our Team goals involve establishing an understanding of the socioeconomic
standpoint of the region currently and then devise a plan to
improve that situation coinciding
with preserving the rainforest. We will investigate and evaluate
the economic and social cost/benefit
relationships involved in preserving
the rainforest based on past development. One of our primary concerns
is the native people. We want to
ensure that by preserving the rainforest,
local economies which rely more on the rainforest and its resources maintain
and/or improve their
economic stability by finding counteracting
opportunities. We also want to make sure that other teams? plans
are economically feasible and
we will accomplish that by understanding
the economic status ourselves.
Tourism:
Tourism is one of the largest industries of the world. Typically
it replaces one aspect of an existing economy. For instance,
if mining stops due to the natural
beauty of an area, then the tourism will probably improve because people
want to see the beautiful scenery
(Goldstone). Tourism must
cater to the need of the travelers, i.e. geared towards students, senior
citizens, etc, and transportation must be
adequate and accessible. People
are attracted to architecture and culture and landscape. The Amazon
Rainforest, being a very specific
wonder, thus interests people and
captures their attention. It also has significance involving numerous
resources, animals, and plant
species, as well as providing an
abundance of oxygen for the people of the earth.
Due to the colonization by the Western capitalist countries, Latin America
has experienced a backward development in their
economy. In 1997, Brazil ranked
39th in top destinations but was 15th in the top tourism spenders (Harrison).
This implies then that there
is some fault in their technique
of advertising or in operating their tourism destinations. This could
be due to the fact that a tourist
?boom? cannot occur where people
are susceptible to illness, accidents, crime, or political violence, and
since Brazil deals with safety
issues, foreigners think twice before
spending lots of money to visit.
Things to consider when deciding
a tourism destination or improving the existing tourism industry:
1. What areas can handle tourism-should it be concentrated in a specific
place? Advantages: less destruction of other
regions, place would become more developed to manage crowds of people and
handle the local industry
a. Local relationship to environment-if the natives want to preserve
the area and show and tell others about where they
live, then more progress will be made towards conservation, and the visitors
will carry that respect as they tour, too.
b. Modifying/altering environmental conservation-increases human
interest (look upon favorably) and increases value for
tourism.
i. Maintenance of the environment is critical in establishing
an environmental based tourist economy.
ii. Questions to address:
1. What is the economic value of the protected area?
2. Is the tourism destroying the conservation plan?
2. Tourism requires some connection between the indigenous people
and the tourists. They need to have some commonality to
attract people and create understanding in desires which appeal to the
travelers otherwise won?t be as successful.
3. Must be financially feasible-?Who pays for paradise?? (Harrison).
If the tourism industry reflects minimal profits compared
with the sacrifices, then other economic options may be better in enhancing
the economic stability.
a. Cost/benefit possibilities of tourism:
i. Increased profits
1. economic growth: local hotels, restaurants, souvenir shops,
travel stores
2. improves transportation and communication systems (technology)
3. increases global interaction
ii. Increased salaries
1. employment: on-site, care, management, local business
b. Potential problems which counter cost/benefit potential:
i. Tourist accommodations-overcrowding
ii. Cultural influence of foreigners (behavior, views, values,
etc. will distort the native society)
4. In terms of the land itself, things to note include:
a. The artificial attractiveness of the land through landscaping
b. The climate of the region combined with the cleanliness of the
air, the clarity of the water, and peacefulness of the
atmosphere
c. The region?s intrinsic qualities based on nature and culture
Ecotourism:
The purpose of ecotourism is to increase tourism while and through environmental
conservation and preservation. It usually
involves traveling to an undisturbed place to enjoy, experience, or study
the natural beauty of an area.
Tourism can be destructive or conservative. In my opinion, ecotourism
may not be the best plan to boost the economic status
initially. After instituting
a preservation strategy, the land will be very fragile and it will take
some time to fully implement all
aspects of the plan. I am
thinking that to create ecotourism immediately might disrupt our plan of
preservation. My concern includes the
effects of the visitors; their presence
creates additional stresses on the environment. The increased amount
of recreation in the area may
negatively affect the wildlife;
pollution in the form of trash, vandalism, food, and noise might upset
animal patterns or behaviors;
transportation could cause soil/vegetation
damage through pavement and the maintenance of roads; souvenirs may become
pieces of the
rainforest which would inhibit our
preservation design. These destructive points, in my opinion, outweigh
the benefits based on the delicate
condition of the outskirts of the
rainforest currently.
Ecotourism was tried along the coast of Brazil, on one of the islands in
the Brazilian Archipelago and was unsuccessful. They found
that the constant flow of people
caused more destruction and delayed progress of conservation more than
was worth improving the economy in
the long run. Parts of the
island had to close because so much damage was being done. The natural
beauty of the environment must be
maintained in order to attract people;
there needs to be a balance. This example is not to outlaw ecotourism
in the Amazon Basin Rainforest
region completely nor to say that
ecotourism does not have potential, I only recommend that we postpone this
operation temporarily. The
rainforest has a very intricate
structure and certainly intrigues many people. I think that after
a minor degree of stability is reached by
the natives and the rainforest as
consequence of our plan, ecotourism could be a very successful operation
in this area.
Perhaps in the meantime, tourism can consist of cultural enterprises.
Advertising through the architecture, history, museums,
zoos, and artwork could establish
interest and draw people into Brazil until the rainforest could handle
tourism.
Although I have just argued that ecotourism should be postponed, that concept was presented in the light of a perfect world. I am looking further into whether ecotourism would be the best way to produce money in order to preserve the Brazilian Rainforest.
More on tourism:
Sources of funds to initiate ecotourism:
1.
government budgets
2.
park entrance fees (entrance fees are key sources of revenue because
the money is instant and closely related to the success
of the tourist attraction)
3.
taxes on exports
4.
private/non-profit groups
5.
international agencies
a. UN Global Environmental Facility
b. US Agency for International Development
Examples of successful protected areas with entrance fees:
1.
Rwanda (before civil war)-$1 million per year
2.
Galapagos National Park-$700,000 per year
3.
Canada-$1.7 billion per year from taxes on wildlife related/based tourism
(Only spent $300 million)
Developing countries usually collapse due to under funding
i.e. Benin, Africa-poor infrastructureà no money from entrance feesà
not properly managedà not much tourism
The problem with funding/running a protected site usually arises early
on in the establishment of the attraction when money needs to be
distributed in the form of salaries and materials and bills.
"It is difficult to promote intangible benefits within governments that
are
short of cash for investment and operating costs" (Oliveira, 38, 2000).
Some Indigenous peoples:
Here's a taste of the vast number of Brazilian indigenous tribes.
Kuikuru of Central Brazil
-Grow manioc (main job)
-50 varieties
-Usually plant 4-5 kinds in one farm
-Made into flour
-Average manioc plot = 1.6 acres à 1,400 lbs. of produce
because the land becomes less and less fertile due to the depletion of
nutrients in the soil
1st year: 10.2 tons produced
2nd year: 9.1 tons produced
3rd year: 6 tons produced
(Hames, 95, 1983)
-1 of 3 Carib-speaking villages
-Live in the tropical rainforest, near mouth of Xingu River
-Used slash and burn technique to cultivate manioc which eventually created
many savannas-not good for agriculture
-Discovered by Europeans in 1884 (Hames, 69, 1983)
-Woman?s responsibility
-Harvesting manioc
-Picking fruit
-If no warfare or no hunting to do, then the men garden the manioc
Baniwa (a.k.a. Wakuenai) of the
Northwest Amazon
-Patrilineal society
-Refuge for aboriginal people
-Poor nutrients in land
-In various stages of integration with ?regional subcultures? (Hames, 119,
1983)
-Collect rubber
-Arawakan speaking
-Along Rio Isana
-Trekking
-Lengthy trips to collect resources/foods form the forests and savannas
-Natives describe the purpose of trekking in many ways:
-to collect products
-to escape disease
-to avoid enemies
Mekranoti Kayapo Indians of Central
Brazil
- (1983) 285 members of this Kayapo-speaking village/peoples
-Located in the southern part of the Brazilian state Para
Txukahamae
-Kayapo ceremonies-many have purpose of naming (Hames, 227, 1983)
-special names are given to children
-ceremonies last 3 months
-songs are sung every morning and evening
-food-tortoise on last day
Xavante of Central Brazil
-First recorded in the 18th century
-Had depended on wild foods and nomadic lifestyle until 1920s
-only planted maize, beans, and pumpkins
-Very independent
-did not like when the government tried to pacify them à ended up
killing government messengers and missionaries
-4,000 Indians live in eastern North Mato Gross state
-Habitat = open upland = plateau
-Almost every man owns a rifle
-Currently located on the Pimentel Barbosa reservation
-post-contact epidemics
-1962-after interaction with investigators
-measles
-whooping cough
-polio
-tuberculosis
-pneumonia (beginning of dry season drastic temperature change between
day and night leads to respiratory problems
Xerente in northern Goias
- (1983) had only several hundred members remaining
Arapaco of Northwest Amazon
-Located in the lower Vaupes River (first inhabitants)
-drugs, gold, and diamonds
-attracted Europeans
-caused the slavery of the Arapaco in 1700s/1800s
-1730, forced labor by Europeans and disease left only 5 villages
-other language groups in area
-Tariana
-Piratapuya
-Tukano
-Of the Eastern Tukanoan family
-No distinct/native language (usually the Eastern Tukanoan family socially
identifies with languages)
-Initially had more than 20,000 people, now, 1979 200 members (~40 per
village) (Hill, 40, 1988)
Wari of Rondonia
-Santo Andre Village
-no roads to village
-only can get there by boat
-1980s: The Polonoroeste project à purpose to establish new
agricultural colonies in Rondonia
-funded by the World Bank and the Brazilian government
-caused huge increase in deforestation rates
-poor people moved to the area
-illegally took land from Indians à since government funded/sponsored
-Know about insect specimens that are edible (but keep it secret)
-Isolated "no trade, intermarriage, or peaceful relations with other humans.
Wari were unfamiliar with a number of crops and
technologies used by most other native peoples of the Brazilian rainforest"
(Conklin, 24, 2001).
-Today, > 2,000 people
-Geographical location and difficult access has kept them separate, independent,
and undisturbed
-Now live in indigenous reserves
-1960s, government persuaded the Wari into certain areas to provide medical
care and schooling
Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau
-1980s, contacted by Brazilian government
-Several hundred people
Not much is known about people between the Jurua and Purus Rivers (mid-Piranha
River)
-the Hi-Merima is very hostile and refuses contact
Indigenous people
contacted but still considered isolated:
Kanoe (Rondonia)
Akuntou (Rondonia)
Zo?e (Para)-1989, official contact
Korubo (Javari River Valley)-1996, official contact
Fronts of ethno-environmental
protection:
Ava Canoeiro (Goias)
Envira River (Acre)
Guapore (Rondonia)
Madeirrinha River (Rondonia and Mato Grosso)
Purus River (Acre)
Javari River Valley (Amazonas)
23% of tropical rainforest is protected by government as indigenous
people's land
~1,038,000 square kilometers (http://www.socioambiental.org/website/povind/indexenglish.htm)
Possible Monitoring method:
"The health and growth of young children are sensitive indicators of
the nutritional status of a community" (Hames, 359, 1983).
1980-Indian Brazilian Movement
rights granted by law
There seems to be a cultural surge in protecting and maintaining Indian
heritage
Brief Environmental
History of Brazil:
1970's - mass
colonization of territory (land distributed to citizens with the intentions
of improving their economic status);
UN Conference in Stockholm (Brazil and other developing nations held strong
opposition to environmental propositions. They
perceived these bills as the economically stable countries preventing their
economic growth and success. Therefore,
reservation was never a primary concern for these third world nations.
Now, Latin America has environmentalists tryign
to influence political decisions and the general population. Unfortunately,
the environmental groups typically operate at a
local level and are not very influential nationwide. (Oliveira, 34).
1972 - CEPRAM,
the state environmental council, is the first of its kind created in Brazil
1980's - Brazilian
states generated their own environmental plans/legislation
1985 (and 1965)
- Brazil = dictatorship; many non-governmental arenas established, including
an environmental division
Possible grant sources:
1. UNESCO (United Nations
Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization)?s World Heritage List
gives resources to protect sites, to
restore habitats, and promote domestic
and international tourism.
2. UN Global Environmental Facility
3. US Agency for International Development
Bibliography:
Berkes, Fikret and Carl Folke. Linking
Social and Ecological Systems: management practices
and social mechanisms for building resilience. New York, NY:
Cambridge University Press, 1998.
Conklin, Beth A. Consuming Grief: compassionate cannibalism in an Amazonian society. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, 2001.
Goldstone, Patricia. Making
the World Safe for Tourism. New Haven, CT: Yale University
Press, 2001.
Hames, Raymond B. and William T. Vickers. Adaptive Responses
of Native Amazonians. New York: Academic Press, 1983.
Harrison, David. Tourism
and the Less Developed World: Issues and Case Studies. New York,
NY: CABI Publishing, 2001.
Hill, Jonathan D. Rethinking History and Myth: Indigenous South
American Perspectives on the Past. Chicago, IL: University of
Illinois
Press, 1988.
Oliveira, Jose Antonio Puppim de. Implementing environmetal
policies in developing countries:
responding environmental
impacts of tourism development by creating environmentally protected
areas in Bahia, Brazil.
Thesis: Massachusetts Institue of Technology, Department of Urban
Studies and Planing, 2000.
Tisdell, Clem. Tourism Economics,
the Environment and Development Analysis and Policy.
Northampton, MA: Edward Elgar Publishing, Inc., 2001.
Website: http://www.socioambiental.org/website/povind/indexenglish.htm
Last updated: Wednesday, October 30, 2002 3:57 pm