The Amazon Symposium, 13-21 July 2006

Report by Thymio Papayannis

 

 

Under the aegis of HAH Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I and Secretary General of the United Nations Mr Kofi Anan, an ecological symposium was held with the theme ‘Amazon: River of Life’, on board the Grand Amazon cruise ship. The symposium was greeted by a warm letter of HH Pope Benedict to the Patriarch. It was ably organised by the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s Committee on Religion, Science and the Environment, with main financial support from the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

 

1. Participation

 

Among the 200 participants from more than 40 countries were religious and political leaders, scientists and conservationists, representatives of the Brazilian authorities and of the indigenous peoples of the Amazon, as well as of the media.

 

The religious leaders participating were two Catholic Cardinals, Christian Orthodox Metropolitans, Bishops from Norway and the UK, and Moslem and Jewish scholars. The Brazilian authorities included the Minister of Environment Marina Silva, the Governor of the State of Amazonas Eduardo Braga and the Secretary of State for the Environment Virgilio Viana. Among the 50 persons from the media were teams from BBC World, the National Greek TV and the Vatican TV, as well as various Brazilian chains. Indigenous spiritual and political leaders represented eloquently some of the main peoples of the region.

 

The symposium was joined by a boat with about 40 young people from all the countries of the Amazon, on a field trip organised by the Amazon Co-operation Treaty Organisation (ACTO).

 

2. Events and activities

 

Formal events started with the opening ceremony on 14 July, and continued with the granting of an honorary doctorate degree to Patriarch Bartholomew by the state university at Manaus. A major happening was the ceremony of the Blessing of the Waters by the indigenous spiritual leaders and the Patriarch, held on a raft at the confluence of Rio Negro and the Solimoes River on 16 July. An official dinner was hosted by the Governor at the Palacio Negro in Manaus on 19 July, followed on the next day by the closing ceremony, during which the Governor spoke of the ‘Green Patriarch of Amazonia’.

 

The programme of the symposium included presentations and discussions on all the aspects of the Amazon seen from various points of view, political, theological, economic, social and ecological. The rights and positive role of the indigenous peoples were stressed on many occasions and were convincingly defended by their leaders. The importance of the region for maintaining global climatic balance was fully documented.

 

A keynote presentation by Metropolitan John of Pergamon, which referred to the lessons to be learned from the indigenous peoples, was especially noted.

Various field trips were organised by airplanes and boats to illegally or semi-legally deforested areas (mainly for the cultivation of soy beans and for grazing), To settlements of indigenous communities practicing sustainable forest exploitation, and to various protected areas.

 

3. General conclusions

 

The participants were impressed by the enormity of the Amazon (about 650 million hectares), its weak human population density, the difficulty of access and the reduced public sector presence, leading to a very limited capacity in managing this vast region and in controlling illegal activities.

 

They noted with great interest the positive trends of many indigenous peoples, both as to the preservation of their culture and to improving demographic figures. They are in need, however, of much stronger support in view of the serious threats posed by large scale agro-industrial, forestry, mining and stock breeding interests.

 

4. Conservation aspects

 

The enormous scale of the Amazon and its special characteristics require a completely different approach to its conservation, which cannot depend only (or mainly) on protected areas. Thus, the goal of 12% of the surface of the Amazon being protected was considered to be far too low –and insufficient to maintain its global climatic role– and yet difficult to achieve effectively. However, the areas allocated to indigenous peoples are an additional safeguard.

 

Such a new approach would incorporate the following aspects:

  •       Agreement and collaboration of all the countries sharing the Amazon must become a primary goal. A good beginning has been made through ACTO, but this initiative must be greatly strengthened.

  •       Development of innovative management methods adapted to the scale and specificities of the region are required. Already some efforts have started through the use of remote sensing in monitoring the area, but much more is required. In particular, the management authorities must be improved radically in human and technical resources, including much greater mobility.

  •       In this context, reliance on the indigenous peoples should be cultivated. They can be trained and entrusted with the management of their areas, and become essential partners in all conservation efforts, with proper remuneration. WWF and other NGOs involved in the Amazon should make a consistent and honest effort to understand and work closely with interested indigenous groups, provide support and guidance (where needed) to them and champion their cause (when it is consistent with nature conservation and the sustainable use of resources).

  •       Establishment of strong alliances in the region are also required. The Amazon cannot be dealt with by a single organisation, even a large one. It requires a pooling of efforts, co-ordination of activities and launching of joint actions. For example, WWF should start co-operating with Greenpeace, which already has a strong presence in the region. General co-operation could be helped by establishing an Amazon Observatory, which would monitor all developments affecting the Amazon, and in particular NGO activities, and make them widely known through a dedicated site. Perhaps WWF could take the lead in this.

  •       The destruction of the Amazon seems to be caused to a large extent by powerful business interests. These cannot be regulated easily in an environmental framework, but must be dealt with through the appropriate business channels. The intention of WWF to work through banks and other financial institutions is thus a highly appropriate method. Other national and international organisations could be also mobilised for the same purpose.

  •       Finally, if we accept the global importance of the Amazon, global funding of its sustainable management and conservation would be a logical consequence. The sums considered in the WWF Business Plan on the Amazon (200-240 million USD) are just a beginning, as the Amazon will require four or five times as much investment, to make a real difference. In this context, various interesting proposals were discussed during the symposium concerning possible sources of large scale funding.