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Public Relations Overview:
I. Public Relations Targets An overview of necessary contact groups and their
status
 | Indigenous Peoples: |
-ARPA policies: The Amazon Region
Protected Areas (ARPA) project provides an Indigenous People Strategy that is
helpful. The ARPA has made efforts to include indigenous people and
quilombolas in the creation and implementation of the ARPA project. According
to the ARPA, the protected areas will provide "buffer zones" for the
indigenous peoples. Furthermore, the project will help conserve the natural
resources that the indigenous people rely on.
-Environmental Effects: The ARPA
maintains that "Indigenous people have for long time used the rainforest
ecosystems for their subsistence and trade without causing major environmental
degradation, and many scientists consider as exemplary their expertise
knowledge in natural resources management." (2)
-According to the National Indian
Foundation of Brazil (FUNAI), there are 326,000 indigenous people in Brazil,
along with about 946,000 swaure kilometers of indigenous land (approximately
11% of the all Brazilian land).
-Displacement: Brazil does not have
laws similar to American eminent domain laws, allowing the government to force
people off their land. Furthermore, it has been the policy of the ARPA not to
cause indigenous people displacement.
| Brazilian Government:
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-IBAMA:
The IBAMA, the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural
Resources, is the critical environmental governing agency of the Brazilian
Government. It regulates the use of the environment, especially the
rainforest. It is responsible for creating laws restricting logging, farming,
land-clearing, construction, deforestation, waterway use, and air regulation,
amonst other things. This was confirmed by Nadja Havt, our expert in Brazil.
The Manager for the Ibama is Jose Barroso. The President is Hamilton Casara.
An overview from the Amazon Region Protected Areas (ARPA) project says, "IBAMA
resources are insufficient to manage effectively a large number of small
units; protected areas lack staff and staff with necessary skills-on average,
there is on IBAMA employee for every 27650 ha of protected (only 20% of the
575 employees administering protected areas have a higher education; and
budgetary processes are centralized and inflexible. Some of IBAMA's problems
are beeing addressed with the help of PPG7 projects. The Extractive Reserves,
Forest Managment and Flood Plains Management Projects are currently being
implemented under IBAMA, but using a different model from the NEP. In these
projects, the Project Coordination unit is headed by a highly qualified staff
contracted under UNDP and not subjected to political appointment. This
coordination unit is inserted ". (1)
-CONAMA: The National Environment Council (CONAMA) was created by Brazilian
environmental Law No. 6,938 in August, 1981. According to the First national
report for the Convention on Biological Diversity, "CONAMA establishes the
norms and criteria for the licensing of polluting or environmentally damaging
activities and determines, whenever necessary, research on alternatives and of
the possible environmental consequences of public or private projects." (3)
-President Fernando Henrique Cardoso: Recently lost his office in elections to
a pro-environment candidate. For more information about Brazilian politics,
link to our team page from this home page.
- ARPA: The aforementioned Amazon Region
Protected Areas (ARPA) Project is a 10 year government program. It was
created to establish a "mosaic" of protected areas in the Brazilian Amazon.
Each year, it expands its ambitions, as it works towards its goal of
rainforest conservation. More information is provided above.
-The Brazilian Government has created the Amazon Regional Protected Areas (ARPA)
in an effort to create 28.5 million hectares of protected areas in the next 10
years.
| American Relations: |
-Mahogany Trade: Recent projections
predict the complete extinction of Mahogany in 8 years. The US is the main
market for mahogany. The Brazilian government has implemented efforts to
limit the mahogany trade with licensing and permit laws. However, bribery and
corruption prevent any real positive effects. Greenpeace is lobbying
Washington to curtail excessive American exportation of this valuable tree of
the Amazon. Our "Public Relations Solutions" provide ways to limit this
trade.
| International Relations: |
-Columbia: Columbia is a nation plagued
with problems similar but not the same as Brazil. Any advancements in either
Columbia or Brazil (including research) will require extensive economic
planning and recovery. Because economic recovery depends a great deal on
foreign aid and internal dispute resolution, public relations are critical to
ensure future stability in Brazil. A Columbia information sessios, entitled
"Columbia In 2003", provided an opportunity to discuss Columbia's problems
with Columbian policy advocates. They emphasize oversight of where foreign aid
is delivered, citing the large percentage of US military aid to Latin American
countries. They further advocated low level improvements, beginning with the
citizenry, in places like Putamayo. They fear that Americans are too
entrenched in "anti-terrorism and anti-narcotics" mindsets to realize that the
Columbian way of life -their business, their society, and even the structure
of power- must be changed before any positive effects will be seen. More
information on my Columbian resource will be available soon.
-Japan: The Japanese Government is
conduction a National Network Genome Project with incredible success in the
Amazon near the Rio Negro River. This demonstrates their interests in the
Amazon and their potential willingness to aid in further research and
preservation.
-Holland: A Dutch group named the
National Institue of Amazon Research (INPA) is a leader in Amazon research.
II The Press
| Television |
-According to the First national report for the
Convention on Biological Diversity, "Environmental topics are now widespread
in the mass media, such as TV, magazines and newspapers. In recent years,
Brazilian television has changed from programmes originating almost
exclusively from abroad, to ones which are produced nationally, regionally and
locally and incorporating Brazilian ethics and cultural values. A good example
is the TV Cultura, a public television station maintained by the Padre
Anchieta Foundation (Fundacao Padre Anchieta). It is an educational channel
with programmes based on four fundamental points: Education, Culture,
Information and Entertainment. TV Cultura launched the programme REPORTER ECO
in February 1992, the first TV newsreel devoted exclusively to scientific
documentaries and news items on the environment. REPORTER ECO reports on
environmental technology in Brazil and abroad, ecotourism, environmental
education, experiments in sustainable development, wildlife projects and
wildife conservation and research. In 1973, TV Globo launched GLOBO REPORTER,
a weekly documentary programme on controversial topics of general interest. In
the last few years, this programme has given more and more time to Brazil s
environmental questions."(3)
| Press |
-"The environment is also increasingly evident in the
national press. Many newspapers and magazines have a regular column on the
environment, or science and technology. Examples include: The publication of
an entire issue devoted to the Amazon by the magazine Veja; Ciencia Hoje, the
monthly magazine of the Brazilian Society for the Advancement of Science (Sociedade
Brasileira para o Progresso da Ciencia - SBPC). The publication of a magazine
Superinteressante, totally dedicated to questions connected with science and
technology and the environment. Globo Ciencia, published by the Brazilian
television company TV Globo; " Agencia Estado, with its column on science and
technology. Folha Ciencia, the science supplement of the newspaper Folha de
Sao Paulo." (3)
III. Conservation Solutions
| a. International
 | - Treaties Create international treaties to limit the mahogany trade.
International pressure should be high enough to cause significant changes. |
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| b. Domestic
| - Alliances Create tactful alliances with interest groups that have
similar goals. Funding, public relations, and political power would be
greater than the sum of all parts |
| - Lobbying Create a lobbying strategy for influencing key political
players on conservation issues, especially the Foreign Aid Bill that is
approved twice a year. |
| - Corporate Coerce polluting American companies to purchase protected
Amazon areas to remedy their own environmental sins. |
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| c. Brazilian
| - IBAMA Befriend the IBAMA through contacts, public relations, and
financial incentives |
| - President Use the new President's own pro-environment campaign
platform to ease new environmental policy through the legislative process.
Political capitol should be a very useful tool in this situation. |
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| d. Indigenous
| - Education Create elementary education programs in cooperation with
indigenous people to make them an integral part of environmental education/ |
| - Appeasement Oversight To establish and maintain an oversight committee
that would ensure the appeasement of indigenous people. Because their help
and cooperation are critical for success. Nothing should be done that
would harm their living environment or livelihood. |
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Sources:
(1) The ARPA (Amazon Region Protected Areas) Project
Overview.
(2) The ARPA (Amazon Region Protected Areas) Indigenous People Strategy.
(3) First national report for the Convention on Biological Diversity.
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