The tropical forests are vanishing faster than ever. At one international conference after another, politicals and planners wring their hands at the world's approaching doom. Deforestation, they tell us, is caused by 'poverty', 'over-population' and 'under-development'. The solutions are therefore obvious - fewer people and more development.This book challenged these assumptions. Deforestation, it argues, is an expression of structural inequalities within tropical countries in their relations with the industrial North. Throwing air money into the development pot will only accelerate forest loss if these structural issues are not simultaneously addressed.Based on six country studies from Latin America, Asia, and Africa to illustrate the real complexity of the problem and the diversity of situations that exist, this book shows how land concentration, land speculation and landlessness are the main causes of improvident land use. Poor people, denied land and livelihood are being forced into the forests in ever increasing numbers for sheer survival, often encouraged by government and development agency funding. Meanwhile the lands they have been forced to abandon are turned over to agribusiness producing cash crops for export.Agrarian reform must be moved to the top of the global agenda. Without land and food security, rural communities will become increasingly destabilises and impoverished and vulnerable ecosystems will be destroyed. Local people must be allowed to regain control over their land and their economies, and Third World debt cancelled, if the twin problems of poverty and environmental destruction are to be tackled.
Product Identifiers
Publisher
ZED Books, The Limited
ISBN-10
1856491404
ISBN-13
9781856491402
eBay Product ID (ePID)
281501
Product Key Features
Author
Larry Lohmann, Marcus Colchester
Publication Name
Struggle for Land and the Fate of the Forests
Format
Trade Paperback
Language
English
Publication Year
1992
Type
Textbook
Number of Pages
404 Pages
Dimensions
Item Length
8.2in
Item Height
0.9in
Item Width
5.5in
Item Weight
0 Oz
Additional Product Features
Lc Classification Number
Sd414.T76s88 1993
Table of Content
Part One: Introducing the Issues Part Two: Case Studies Part Three: Conclusions Appendix: The New York Declaration References About the Authors Index
Copyright Date
1993
Target Audience
College Audience
Topic
Agriculture / Forestry, Ecosystems & Habitats / Forests & Rainforests, Industries / Agribusiness, Development / Economic Development, Economics / General
Lccn
93-150595
Dewey Decimal
333.75/0913
Dewey Edition
20
Illustrated
Yes
Genre
Technology & Engineering, Nature, Business & Economics