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The Fate of the Forest

Developers, Destroyers, and Defenders of the Amazon, Updated Edition

Susanna B. Hecht Alexander Cockburn

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English
University of Chicago Press
15 January 2011
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 1960s and 1970s, 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.
By:   ,
Imprint:   University of Chicago Press
Country of Publication:   United States
Edition:   Updated ed.
Dimensions:   Height: 22mm,  Width: 14mm,  Spine: 2mm
Weight:   510g
ISBN:   9780226322728
ISBN 10:   0226322726
Pages:   408
Publication Date:  
Audience:   General/trade ,  ELT Advanced
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active

Susanna Hecht is professor in the School of Public Affairs and the Institute of the Environment at the University of California, Los Angeles. Alexander Cockburn is coeditor of CounterPunch, a regular columnist for the Nation and First Post, and the author of several books, including Political Ecology, Corruptions of Empire, and The Golden Age Is in Us.

Reviews for The Fate of the Forest: Developers, Destroyers, and Defenders of the Amazon, Updated Edition

""Hecht's and Cockburn's historical perspective is illuminating.... They are to be congratulated."" - Nature ""This is a powerful book, elegantly written and well informed."" - Times Literary Supplement""


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