The Amazon rainforest plays a critical role in regulating the Earth's climate and housing vast biodiversity. However, as much as 20% of the Amazon has been cut down in recent decades due to development by the nine countries that own portions of the forest. Further deforestation and climate change threaten to cause irreversible damage. International cooperation is needed to incentivize sustainable management and alternative industries to preserve this important global resource.

1. The Amazon
How should this important global commons be
managed and by whom?
May 21, 2015
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2. As the world's largest
remaining rainforest, the Amazon
plays a critical role in the Earth's
ecosystem with regards to climate
change, bio-diversity, and fresh
water production. However this is
a global commons that is entirely
owned by 9 countries with Brazil
owning a majority 64%. As
temperatures rise due to global warming and rain patterns change in the amazon it is
estimated that between 30% and 60% of the Amazon rainforest could become a dry savanna.
All of the countries with ownership
of the Amazon are considered
developing countries. Most of the
world would like these countries to
preserve the rainforest due to its
importance in the global eco-
system. However, most of the
countries that are putting pressure
for preservation of the rainforest
are rich developed nations that
have some of the worst history of
deforestation such as the US and
the EU. Through history an
unfortunate side of development has usually been tied to deforestation. How can the
developed world tell these developing nations that they can't allow deforestation having
completely decimated their own forrest stocks?
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3. However the current
situation of ownership by
these countries doesn't
seem to be working with
20% of the amazon being
cut down in just the last 4
decades. If you look at the
more developed southern
region of Brazil where the
Atlantic Rainforest is
located it is estimated that
nearly 90% has already
been cut, leaving it
basically nonexistent. One importance of the Amazon is it's bio-diversity and by deforesting
large sections of it at a time, we are constantly shrinking the large virgin areas and we are not
sure of the damage that this creates . Is there a point where the forest could die off? There
are many scientist trying to put a calculation of where that tipping point would be. If that
point is near, then really
the "global commons" is
that small little piece
left before hitting the
tipping point where the
forest would be lost as
the Atlantic Rainforest
was in the south of
Brazil. Making this
small finite resource, an
extremely valuable and
critical global common.
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4. The loss of the Amazon could have major impacts on the global ecosystems and could
cause the tipping point of runaway climate change. Considered the lungs of the earth, the
Amazon is a vital resource that we need to look at as a global common and find a way to
work with current ownership to protect it. The difficulties come in how to provide incentives
for these developing nations to protect these assets. Maybe developed nations need to pay for
the forests they depleted through their development process by providing the necessary
capital investments to provide alternative income sources other than those that cause
deforestation of the Amazon.
There are many different ideas on possible solutions and some are currently being
applied. One of the newest and most promising solutions is the emergence of Sustainability
Credits. This model is similar to that of Carbon Credits however it incorporates providing
capital for and promoting the use of the land in sustainable ways to provide income for local
families. Another solution has been the creation of several sustainability certificates such as
PEFC and FSC that can be applied to products coming out of the Amazon assuring that that
they have been produced in a sustainable way.
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5. FSC-Forest Stewardship Counsel is an international not for-profit, multi-stakeholder
organization established in 1993 to promote responsible management of the world’s forests. Its
main tools for achieving this are standard setting, certification and labeling of forest products.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, half of the world’s
forests have already been altered, degraded, destroyed or converted into other land uses. Much
of the remaining forests today suffer from illegal exploitation and otherwise poor management.
FSC was established as a response to these concerns over global deforestation. FSC is a global
forest certification system established for forests and forest products. From the perspective of the World Wildlife
Foundation (WWF) this voluntary mechanism can be regarded as one of the more interesting initiatives of the last
decade to promote better forest management. FSC is an international association of members. It is a platform for
forest owners, timber industries, social groups and environmental organizations to come together to find solutions
to improve forest management practices. FSC works to ensure the permanent existence of forest areas through
responsible forest management and conservation. Use of the FSC logo is intended to signify that the product
comes from responsible sources — environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable. The
logo gives consumers the option of supporting responsible forestry by purchasing products with an independent,
global and credible label for forest products.
PEFC-Program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification is an international, non-profit,
non-governmental organization, which promotes sustainable forest management through
independent third party certification. It is considered the certification system of choice for small
forest owners. PEFC was founded in 1999 in response to the specific requirements of small- and
family forest owners as an international umbrella organization providing independent
assessment, endorsement and recognition of national forest certification systems. After the
successful endorsement of certification systems in Europe, Australia and Chile became the first non-European
national standards to be endorsed by PEFC in 2004. PEFC’s certification criteria are based on globally recognized
principles, guidelines and criteria developed by international and intergovernmental bodies with broad consensus
from interested stakeholders. Its 35 worldwide independent national forest certification systems represent more
than 240 million hectares of certified forests, making it the largest forest certification system in the world, covering
about two-thirds of the globally certified forest area.It is based in Geneva, Switzerland.
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6. Climate change is putting pressure on many important eco-systems and it is
jeopardizing one of the planets greatest gifts, the Amazon. Humanity cannot take its eyes off
of this critical resource as it was already facing massive pressure from many fronts before
climate change. It is currently owned and managed by 9 different countries each with their
own policies and agendas and has huge deforestation from development and illegal logging.
Adding climate change on top of these already tough pressures could very easily be the
tipping point that causes its destruction bringing all of the unknown dangers to humanity
from a collapse of the Amazon. The world needs to wake up and see risks that climate
change is putting the Amazon in before it is too late.
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