There are presently less than 250,000 indigenous people who have so far survived deforestation.  Among these people there are different 215 ethnic groups.  These people speak 170 different languages.  These people live in 526 territories in Brazil.  These territories together cover 190 million acres.  Living on the depths of the Rainforest it is possible that there are up to 50 or more indigenous groups that have never had contact with the outside world.  If the Rainforest is destroyed these cultures will vanish from the face of the earth.  In Brazil alone 87 tribes were wiped out in the first half of this the 20^th century.  Worldwide more than 1,000 rainforest cultures still exist.  However all of these cultures face an unknown existence due to outside pressures.  The Rainforest rightfully belongs to the people who have lived there and kept it for thousands of years. The rainforest should not be taken form them just because they don’t have an army to defend it.  These people have as much right to their homeland as any nationality.  In the past the United States has protected people, cultures, and nations, which faced invasion.  Should these cultures not be protected just because they are not officially a country? There are reasons that justify the destruction of the rain forests from a moral and ethical behavior standpoint.

In logging so much is an ethical standpoint because we only use about half of each tree. It is not exactly wrong to utilize part of the rainforest because the rainforest trees have special kinds of wood that you can’t get anywhere else in the world and there is a need for this wood in building. There should be a balance between mans needs and being responsible stewards of this beautiful part of our planet that God has given us.

It is right to preserve rainforests because they provide education to all. They also provide scientific study and numerous resources, also jobs for people. It also provides food to eat, and products to use that can benefit man in many ways.

There would be tremendous struggles in this world if we continue to destroy these resources; this would cut our supplies into about one fourth. This complex ecosystem is a gift that we should cherish and respectfully use. As we look at the bigger picture and all the lives involved we see the need for serious consideration in all the decisions we make about the rainforest. Unfortunately, in many rainforest countries, those countries do not outlaw the very things that are destructive to the rainforests.  The biggest threats to the rainforests around the world are logging, clearing land for cattle grazing, and houses.  In the African rainforests farming plays a big role in deforestation, but the two biggest threats to the loss of rainforests in Africa is logging and commercial hunting, both of which are legal.  One more big threat to the rainforests in Asia is their large population and demands for food and agricultural land.  In 1969-1994, Indonesia transmigrated eight million people to rainforest land.  Sadly, 1.7 million acres were stripped for homes and farms for the people of Indonesia. 

       Whether logging or farming, hunting or relocating people, many threats to the rainforests are completely legal in the rainforest countries.  But just because something is legal does not make it correct.  To be moral means, “to conform to a standard of what is right and good”.   To be ethical means “conforming to accepted professional standards of conduct”.  All countries should act in a way that is correct and good when it comes to saving and protecting the rainforests.   The rainforest countries should not sell off their own precious lands for money.  They should not allow deforestation to occur, even though it means providing food and money for their people.  Instead, they should find other ways of providing food and money.  They should ask for help from western nations.  They should take the time to learn farming techniques that are not destructive.

       Western nations are also not moral and ethical in their decisions about the rainforest.  Sometimes the countries that scream the loudest about conservation are the biggest offenders.  America, Canada and Japan should not allow companies to destroy the rainforest for cattle ranches so that beef can be bought inexpensively.  They should not allow companies like Georgia Pacific Papers to cut down rainforests for timber.

Introduction   

Producing, Exchanging & Distributing

Recreation

Protecting

Organizing and Governing

Pros and Cons

Moral & Ethical Behavior

The Team - About Us

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