The fate of the forest : developers, destroyers, and defenders of the Amazon / / Susanna Hecht and Alexander Cockburn

• Record Nr.: UNINA9910810965003321
• Autore: Hecht Susanna B
• Pubbl/distr/stampa: Chicago ; ; London, : University of Chicago Press, 2010
• ISBN: 1-283-15970-8; 9786613159700; 0-226-32273-4
• Edizione: [Updated ed.]
• Descrizione fisica: 1 online resource (404 p.)
• Altri autori (Persone): CockburnAlexander
• Disciplina: 333.750981/1
• Soggetti: Deforestation - Amazon River Region; Forest conservation - Amazon River Region; Rain forest ecology - Amazon River Region; Amazon River Region
• Lingua di pubblicazione: Inglese
• Formato: Materiale a stampa
• Livello bibliografico: Monografia
• Note generali: Description based upon print version of record.
• Nota di bibliografia: Includes bibliographical references and index.
• Nota di contenuto: Front matter -- Contents -- Maps -- Preface to the 2010 Edition -- Acknowledgements -- ONE. The Forests of Their Desires -- TWO. The Realm of Nature -- THREE. The Heritage of Fire -- FOUR. The Amazon Prospectus -- FIVE. Magnates in the Amazon: Between Boom and War -- SIX. The Generals' Blueprint -- SEVEN. The Furies Unleashed -- EIGHT. The Defenders of the Amazon -- NINE. The Ecology of Justice -- APPENDIX A. Interview with Ailton Krenak -- APPENDIX B. Interview with Darrell Posey -- APPENDIX C. Interview with Osmarino Amancio Rodrigues -- APPENDIX D. Interview with Father Michael Feeney -- APPENDIX E. Forest Peoples' Manifesto -- APPENDIX F. Seven Beliefs, True and False, about the Amazon -- APPENDIX G. A Note on Parks, the Origins of Yosemite and the Expulsions of Native Americans -- Glossary of Plant Names -- Glossary of Portuguese Terms -- Notes and References -- Bibliography -- Afterword: A Forest Is One Big Thing -- Index
• Sommario/riassunto: The Amazon rain forest covers more than five million square kilometers, amid the territories of nine different nations. It represents over half of the planet's remaining rain forest. Is it truly in peril? What ; steps are necessary to save it? To understand the future of Amazonia, one must know how its history was forged: in the eras of large pre-Columbian populations, in the gold rush of conquistadors, in centuries of slavery, in the schemes of Brazil's military dictators in the 1960's and 1970's, and in new globalized economies where Brazilian soy and beef now dominate, while the market in carbon credits raises the value of standing forest. Susanna Hecht and Alexander Cockburn show in compelling detail the panorama of destruction as it unfolded, and also reveal the extraordinary turnaround that is now taking place, thanks to both the social movements, and the emergence of new environmental markets. Exploring the role of human hands in destroying-and saving-this vast forested region, The Fate of the Forest pivots on the murder of Chico Mendes, the legendary labor and environmental organizer assassinated after successful confrontations with big ranchers. A multifaceted portrait of Eden under siege, complete with a new preface and afterword by the authors, this book demonstrates that those who would hold a mirror up to nature must first learn the lessons offered by some of their own people.