ALLIANCE FOR A RESPONSIBLE, PLURAL AND UNITED WORLD
www.echo.org

FORESTS OF THE WORLD:
PROPOSALS FOR SUSTAINABILITY
 
Preservation of forests and biodiversity
Initial Proposals for Debate

 January 2001
Organisation: Luis Felipe Cesar (lfcesar@terra.com.br)

Os aruoredos som muj mujtos e grandes e djmfimdas maneiras.
(Pero Vaz de Caminha, recorder who sailed with
the Portuguese caravels that landed in Brazil in 1500.)

 
AN ALLIANCE FOR A RESPONSIBLE, PLURAL AND UNITED WORLD INITIATIVE
HUMANITY AND BIOSPHERE POLE
A world-wide network for a collective exchange of ideas, proposals and action plans for the construction of a sustainable forestry and non-predatory culture, by means of virtual communication systems, meetings and events.
Crescente Fértil - Resende / Charles Leopold-Mayer Foundation – Paris

Taking into account the forthcoming meeting of the World Citizens Assembly in December 2001, we have prepared this “Booklet of Proposals for the Forests”.  The first version was prepared with the institutional support of the Non-Governmental Organisation (ONG) Crescente Fértil, established in Resende, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in February 2000; it was forwarded with an invitation for suggestions to Brazilian associates and to the forum for Internet debate of the state of Rio de Janeiro - named “Rede Ambiente-RJ”.  It was provided with technical support by Isabel de Andrade Pinto, who has a Master’s degree in ecology.  It was also improved with valuable thoughts by Carlos Funzalida, forestry engineer, director of the Protege Project in Santiago, Chile.  The second version was presented to the Forestry and Biodiversity panel, at the International Congress for Human Coexistence, in Montreal (Canada) in July 2000.  In October 2000, the document was discussed with Olivier Rank, the engineer responsible for the forestry section of “La Bergerie”, an experimental farm of the Foundation for Human Progress (FHP), located in France.
The objective of this document is to provoke a public debate which would lead to the creation of responsible and united proposals on the subject of Forests.  As a starting point we have used the Letter from the Allies of the Forest and People of the Earth, as a source of inspiration for the present document, which is open to every type of contribution.
To participate in the collective composition of the “Booklet of Proposals on Forestry and Biodiversity”, write to redflo@terra.com.br

1. INITIAL PROPOSALS.
To interrupt the reduction of forested areas of the world.
The non-sustainable usage of forestry products has been uninterruptedly reducing the area of forests of the planet, and this has had a direct impact on the environment, especially regarding biodiversity, soil, water quality and climate.  The proposal seeks the interruption of this process, by means of the implementation of sustainable systems of forestry management in all the regions of the world.
To increase the areas covered by forests in the world.
To enlarge the size of forestry coverage of the planet is one of the necessary measures required to reduce global warming and an improvement of the land, rivers and atmosphere.  To recuperate areas which have been degraded and establish forests to supply the market for lumber and its sub-products will have favourable results, including the creation of job opportunities and revenue.
To promote and establish an international network of protected urban forests.
In a world of increasing urbanisation, city dwellers are, in the last instance, those responsible for decision-taking with regard to the environmental future of the planet.  
The preservation of the great forests will depend fundamentally on making city dwellers sensitive to this subject - by identifying the forests, recognising their value and man’s dependence on urban woods.  It is necessary to stimulate urban citizens, who participate in day-to-day activities of modern life, to know and recognise the forests and their products.  In addition, wooded areas, including urban ones, will allow people to contemplate the natural world, contributing towards  the formation of a new ethic with regard to the relationship between nature and human beings, their interdependence, and with other forms of life.

2.  CONTEXT.
The clearing of forests and biodiversity.
During the last 5,000 years human beings have had the capacity to reduce the forests of the planet to less than half of their original size.  If initially 50% of the earth’s surface was covered by forests, today they barely reach 20%.
Many of the areas considered pasture, such as the African savannahs, the pampas of Argentina, and some of the prairies of North America, were covered by forests before human beings destroyed them. In drier areas, such as North Africa, Greece, Italy and Australia, the regions which were cleared of their forests were then used for agriculture, and their soil was impoverished to such an extent that they became deserts.
According to the United Nations, the earth loses 11 million hectares (27 million acres) of forests every year, while 70 million hectares (172 million acres) of cultivated land suffer the consequences of desertification.  Forty percent of the forests of Central America were destroyed between 1950 and 1980.  Curiously, the lack of firewood is a problem in 57 countries and the consequences of clearing forested areas are notorious: erosion, rivers obstructed by sediment, global warming, floods, etc.
One of the consequences of the clearing of forests and other habitats is the accelerating loss of wildlife.  Forests and their regional sustainability, from the point of view of ecological standards and processes, are dependent on the existence of large areas where the flora is kept intact and interconnected, allowing for the roaming of animals.
 The sustainability of the forests and conservation of their biodiversity depend on a world-wide effort to maintain and connect the remaining sections of forestry.  It is on that scale that the maintenance of biodiversity is finally determined in the long run.

3.  OUTLOOK.
Statistics of social, financial and environmental changes point to a continuous destruction of our forests and a worsening of the environmental equilibrium.  Courage, strength and the capacity to act on a collective and united level, if effectively employed, can lead us down an alternative path.  The challenge which we present here is immense.  It comes down to recuperating, or even re-creating, a forestry culture, contributing to the birth of a critical mass of people effectively dedicated and mobilised with plans to protect our forests, both large and small.
 The mobilising effort has to be found in the cities.  It includes the identification of urban woods, in private or public areas, but always recognised and defended by the private sector, besides being open to public access.  These may be existing forests or those replanted with native trees, where small copses, vegetation of a small size, leaves, dry branches and small wildlife can interact naturally. It is fundamental that they be of easy access, in a central part of the city, symbolising a rebirth.  As in the past, when cities were surrounded by forests, this movement promotes the city surrounding the forest, like a protective enclosure - a fortification of stone and people protecting their natural treasure.
 To promote the urban wooded areas has, as one of its objectives, to have citizens become familiarised with the forest and, at the same time, promote partnerships for the development of educational activities and the recuperation of traditional folklore related to forestry.
 In rural areas, to interrupt the growing area of cleared land and promote the recuperation of degraded regions are possible, provided a wide range of activities are implemented, taking as a reference and inspiration concrete examples already existent and the mobilisation of urban partners.
 At present, the voracity of the lumber market runs parallel with experiences of sustainable usage with favourable results, supported by a growing interest in environmental affairs in the news media.  The mechanisms of certification can contribute in a significant way to bring about the recovery of forestry and the sustainability of enterprises which are active in this area.  The consumer is, at the same time, a fundamental point which can exert pressure on the market.  To act together with business enterprises, pressing them to adopt the advantages of certification, is part of the overall strategy.
 In rural areas, already cleared of their forests, the agricultural forestry business appears as an important financial alternative, capable of keeping families on their land, living by having a sustainable production of products such as firewood, coal, fruit, heart of palm, and even timber - for which the demand is increasing as stocks continue to drop.  These activities can involve the most diverse parts of society, and also generate more jobs and revenue, starting with the training of young people in the production of cuttings, planting, monitoring development and guiding visitors.
 4.  PARTICIPANTS.
The Forestry Forum, within the activities of the Alliance, will seek to obtain the involvement, starting with its own members, of those who have had experience with forestry recuperation or protection.  These participants will take part in the preparation of the “Booklet of Proposals for our Forests”.  The electronic media (Internet) will be the means of exchanging thoughts, discussions, and mobilising for a new forestry agreement.
 The participation of the members, the identification of action plans and the mobilisation in countries where great stretches of forestry and urban woods still exist will be the result of the vitality of the forum.
Urban citizens, both men and women; those who work in the hub of Humanity and Biosphere; groups of young people and artists; important publishers, activists and participants in events and working programmes; universities and scientists; businessmen who can link brand names with campaigns to plant trees; governments, at their different levels, who can promote public policies of incentives to increase forested areas; all working in an alliance, will transcend (as in fact the subject does transcend) the local scope, and, naturally, rural populations (traditional, Indians, farmers and rural communities) as guardians of the earth, of traditional know-how and biodiversity.
The media will be summoned to participate, not only as publishers, but also as organisations that help to shape public opinion, in particular the printed press, who are a great consumer of paper....and trees.
All these participants will be interacting by contributing to the Internet site on this subject and the effective implementation of the proposals.
For more information please refer to: “The History of the Forests” by John Perlin; “By iron and fire” by Warren Dean; and “Tropical Forest Remnants” edited by William F. Laurence and Richard O. Bierregaard Jr.  See also the following Internet sites: www.whrc.org, www.wri.org, www.fao.org, www.greenpeace.org.br and www.wwf.org.br
5. SOME ACTUAL CASES.
URBAN FORESTS.
In Brazil, the cities of TAUBATÉ (state of São Paulo) and PIRAÍ (state of Rio de Janeiro) have, respectively, the Parque Monteiro Lobato (Monteiro Lobato Park) and the Parque Florestal da Mata do Amador (Amador Mountain Range Forestry Park); both are dedicated to environmental education activities and conservation of forests.  Besides these, the city of SÃO PAULO has its Parque Trianom (Trianon Park) directly on Avenida Paulista, one of the city’s central thoroughfares;  the city of RIO DE JANEIRO includes the largest urban forest in the world, the Parque Nacional da Tijuca (Tijuca National Park), and in the city of VOLTA REDONDA, in the southern part of the state of Rio de Janeiro, there is the Floresta da Cicuta (Cicuta Forest) considered a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO.  In Manaus (state of Amazonas), the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (INPA -  Amazon Region National Research Institute) opened the Bosque da Ciência (Forest of Science) to the public, to be used for environmental education and to serve as an area of leisure for the local population and tourists.

FORESTRY MANAGEMENT IN THE AMAZON BASIN.
At present, the Amazon forests produce almost 25 million cubic metres (883 million cubic feet) of lumber, which is 80% of the entire Brazilian production.  The forestry exploitation methods in that region can best be described as “forestry plunder”.  Initially, the loggers enter the forests to remove those trees of high commercial value and, within a short interval, return to the section of the forest already explored in the search for smaller trees of certain types which have a high value.  As a result, they open new roads and trails, tearing down trees with tractors, causing a tremendous deterioration of the forests.
 Until 1990, there were few cases of forestry management in actual practice in the Amazon region.  In that decade, the IMAZON (Instituto do Homem e Meio Ambiente da Amazônia - the Amazon Region Institute of Man and Environment) initiated a pilot test of forestry management, attempting to reconcile the activities of applied research and the forest’s expansion.  Working in partnership with a logging company of the town of Paragominas, in the state of Pará, the largest lumber centre of Brazil, the test was made on the property of a local sawmill, on two neighbouring sections: one subject to exploitation practices without any planning, and the other under a forestry management regime.
 The study revealed the advantages of forestry management.  In general, there was a reduction of waste, greater efficiency in the use of equipment, a reduction in the risks of workmen’s accidents, and greater productivity.  One of the more important discoveries regarding forestry management was related to the logging cycle.  It was estimated that the implementation of management techniques can reduce the logging cycle in half: from 70 to 100 years (without management) to 30 to 40 years (with management).
 These results show that forestry management can result in a 100% increase in production in certain instances.  In these cases, the logging companies would require only half of the forestry area that they use today to provide their needs for raw material.  Forestry management also guarantees the maintenance of a healthy population of trees to act as stock for reproduction of commercially valuable species in logging areas.
The IMAZON project has served as a catalyst and an initial spark of promising initiatives in forestry management in the Amazon basin.  The Fundação Floresta Tropical (Tropical Forest Foundation) is copying the model in other areas of the Amazon forests.  The logging company Precious Wood is using a project of management on a commercial scale (see below).  There are community forestry management initiatives, involving Non-Government Organisations (ONGs) and local populations, in the regions of Machadinho do Oeste (state of Rondonia), Carajás, Altamira and Marabá (state of Pará), and other municipalities.  Besides these, the Instituto Sócio-Ambiental (ISA - Socio-Environmental Institute), in partnership with the Bep-Noi association of the Xikrin Indians, is starting a pilot project in forestry management in the Cateté Reservation, in the south of the state of Pará.
 Amaral, P. and  T. Corrêa, 1997.  Forestry expansion and education in the eastern Amazon basin: the case of the pilot-project of forestry management.  From S.M. Pádua and M.F. Tabanez (org.), “Educação Ambiental: caminhos trilhados no Brasil” (“Environmental Education: roads travelled in Brazil”, IPÊ, Brazil.
 6.  FORESTRY BRAINSTORM.
Ÿ	Revert the process of desertification.
Ÿ	Link the value of money to forestry resources instead of gold.
Ÿ	Include the subject “History of the Forests” in the curriculum of our schools.
Ÿ	Develop a “Seal of Participation in Forestry Resources” for consumer products, so that consumers will know the forestry origin of products, such as plastics, petrol, furniture, tyres, timber, coal and others.
Ÿ	Produce booklets of forestry art.
Ÿ	Promote art in the forests, by using forest clearings for staging theatre plays, painting exhibits, dance, music, and other artistic activities. 
  SOME CONSIDERATIONS.
 To enter a new century and participate in the turn of the millennium can mean merely a change of date, or one can take the opportunity to reconsider many matters related to the lifestyle of each individual, his surroundings, his immediate neighbourhood, his country and even the entire world.
 This small reflection has a large content as in our case, of the PROTEGE project, we have asked ourselves what our role is and what have we contributed to society, and from this scenario we will share our experience as part of the project.
 The question is: what to do to preserve, what to do to teach, what to do so that public conscience becomes aware of what we possess and the need to care for it?
 Our experience has cast some light which we would like to share and which is definitely where the strength rises to take this project forward, and to address that part which is technical and must be similar to other projects.
 We could summarise our experience in a single phrase:  We seek to energise hope with concrete actions.  What does that mean?  It is related to an inner feeling which attempts to contribute to the meaning of life itself.  ENERGISE, I say because this sentiment is found in all human beings; we have been created with a creative force within ourselves.
 Several circumstances in life have the effect of clouding this force until we get to the point that we even doubt that it really exists, and only nostalgia of times past reminds us of its existence.  Which is why we say “to energise hope” because when one reaches out one can gradually infect others.
 This has been PROTEGE since its beginning.  It was the beauty of a place which conquered us.  We delved into it and a phrase became our central theme: “this place must be protected”. We started to know the place in a cautious fashion, taking photographs, searching for its strong and weak spots, preparing a project and gaining the cooperation of more people.  This way we went calling, placing our talents at the disposal of the project.  Today the project has grown and become credible.  As I share this experience of Protege, this is what first comes to my mind.
 Latin America still has the flavour of virgin land, and, even when we know of the immense destruction of which it has been a victim, we proclaim its beauty to protect it.
 ALLIANCE FOR A RESPONSIBLE, PLURAL AND UNITED WORLD
 As I read part of your proposal I had the following thought:  where does the solidarity of man come from?  It is a superior value.  All the publicity today goes against this value, making it seem counter to human nature, and it is partly true, since it is hard for people to give of themselves, without expecting something in return.  In this sense we believe that it is a sure road to penetrate into the higher values of the human being which are alive in your soul; it is through beauty, to show forth nature and people in all their splendour, letting ourselves be taken up by your dynamic proposal; when one feels this, one wants to share it. It moves one, and I do not speak of aesthetic beauty, but that gift that allows one to observe creation as it really, truly is.
 I share this because the technical part is something which we have at hand, but the basics are rarely mentioned.  I believe that in this millennium the successful projects will have to have a measure of inspiration and will be essentially simple. Very often techniques and technicians make matters complicated in order to stake out a territory which gives them a certain sense of power, but projects will have to be simple so that others can participate; people will enjoy them when they understand them and so fulfill an inner desire; from that sensation rises the thought “now I understand”.
Carlos Fuenzalida
Santiago, Chile

 
       Translated from Portuguese and Spanish by Ronald A. Brewer.
 
 LETTER FROM “ALIADOS DA FLORESTA E GENTE DA TERRA”
 
Land and forests were the mainstay of civilisations.  The growth of great empires and countries was accomplished by using the resources of forests, which became more and more distant and rare at the same rate that cities grew in size.
The colonising countries imposed rules for the occupation of land and sacked the forests in their colonies.  Today the countries in the northern hemisphere are the greatest consumers of lumber from the tropical forests.  In addition, the largest part of the land is in the hands of relatively few people, preventing farmers and their families  from having access to the land.  Both the land and the forests are assets of common usage and their use in an environmentally sustainable form constitute a citizen’s right.
The forests are part and parcel of a constellation of living beings of this world.  They are essential for the conservation of biodiversity, water, soil, the charm of landscapes and spiritual development.  It is fundamental for the conservation of forests to include the participation, the knowledge and the culture of its traditional inhabitants or ancestors; they should be integrated into the processes of sustainable usage and preservation of biodiversity.  It is not a coincidence that the tropical regions hold, simultaneously, the greatest biological and geo-cultural varieties of the planet, which should be preserved in their entirety because of their interdependence.
The Alliance will be able to endorse and integrate closely all the initiatives for a responsible and united usage of land and forests in the following ways:
Ÿ	Contributing towards the information supplied to government institutions and citizens with regard to their diverse and intrinsic values;
Ÿ	Endorsing the establishment of agrarian reform and development;
Ÿ	Endorsing the development of urban reform, with concentration on the equilibrium between field and city and between the inhabitants of the land;
Ÿ	Assisting in securing resources for these action plans.
 Bertioga (state of São Paulo, Brazil), December 1997.
Signed by:
Anil Bhattarai (Nepal)
Feroz-Ud-Din, Sain Bibi, Simron Jit Singh (Dehdarum - India)
Rosenilde dos Santos Viana, Guilherme de Melo França, Luis Felipe Cesar, Márcia Freire (Brazil)
Rob Wheeler (Santa Cruz - USA)
Samuel M. Kibedi (Iganga - Uganda)
The above letter was written during the International Meeting of the Alliance for a Responsible and United World, in Bertioga, in December 1997, which gathered about 150 participants from 50 different countries.  At the meeting the group Allies of the Forests and People of the Earth was formed, made up of people whose principal activities deal directly with the resources of land and forests; they wrote this document - a starting point for thinking as an alliance on the subject of forests and land.