The Brazilian Amazon Rainforest [Hardcover]

Luiz C. Barbosa (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 12, 2000 | ISBN-10: 076181521X | ISBN-13: 978-0761815211

This provocative book documents how national and global politics intersected to bring about changes in Brazil's environmental preservation laws. Luiz Barbosa argues that global forces coupled with two decades of military rule in Brazil led to policies that promoted deforestation for the sake of development, ultimately having devastating consequences for Amazônia's ecosystem and its native populations. By the mid-1980s, changes in global ecopolitics and the onset of democracy in Brazil paved the way for new environmental preservation laws. Barbosa's study is unique in showing the impact of global processes on third-world environmental degradation and in its claim that democracy can facilitate preservation. The latter point is further emphasized in a comparative chapter in which Barbosa demonstrates the importance of democracy for environmental preservation in Costa Rica, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Sociologists and anthropologists interested in issues surrounding economic development as well as environmental activists will find much to their liking in this work.

Editorial Reviews

Review

. . . it will be useful to students and others who want a quick overview of Amazônia and the forces that mould current policy debates.>>>> (Latin American Studies )

. . . it will be useful to students and others who want a quick overview of Amazônia and the forces that mould current policy debates. (Latin American Studies )

About the Author

Luiz C. Barbosa is Associate Professor of Sociology at San Francisco State University.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: University Press Of America (January 12, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076181521X
• ISBN-13: 978-0761815211
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,876,129 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book on Deforestation in the Amazon, February 23, 2008

By 

Mark S. "MS" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Brazilian Amazon Rainforest (Textbook Binding)

This is an excellent book on the deforestation occuring in the Brazilian Amazon region. It makes an excellent argument that deforestation is connected to both economic and political interests, at a regional, national and global level.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars GOOD HISTORY OF AMAZON RELATED EVENTS, ONLY OK ANALYSIS, January 4, 2006

By 

Denis Benchimol Minev "Amazonia" (Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Brazilian Amazon Rainforest (Textbook Binding)

In this book, the author intends to initially describe the history of major projects and dreams for the Amazon through military and civilian rule in Brazil. The facts are indeed interesting and likely correct. The author describes in good detail the grand dreams of the military government to develop the region. Then he describes the sea change that occured when democracy returned. With democracy, there was a renewed interest in preservation.

However, the analysis is difficult to swallow from a few perspectives:
1. Much of the analysis is written from a traditional marxist point of view, with a veil of class conflict, which in this case means poor indians and farmers vs international interests. It often feels like he simplifies scenarios by bringing in the marxist class conflict perspective to explain situations that are in fact more complex than that.
2. Along with the marxist perspective, any explorer in search of profit is poorly portrayed in the book. The author focuses on government action and plays down private enterprise in the Amazon as basically undesirable. It becomes clear quite quickly that the author does not believe in capitalism.
3. There is a main thesis, that democracy brings about preservation. Though it seems to be true, the book forcefully tries to fit every single fact to match the thesis. Some conclusions do not seem warranted.

Overall, I would not recommend this to someone just getting acquainted with the region. If you are knowledgeable of the economics and sociology of the Amazon, then this is a good book to give you a different non-mainstream somewhat biased perspective.