Monday, May 17, 2010
Dan Pers - Guatemalan Deforestation: A Land Right Issue (THURS)
Guatemala is a Central American country that has a rich rainforest. However, throughout the country’s history it has suffered from a great deal of deforestation. The source of the deforestation comes from two different causes. The first cause is the mass logging of lumber by large corporations. The second is from the slash and burn practices of peasant farmers. The cause of these two sources is also two fold. There exists an issue with both the large companies and the farmers having an anthropocentric mind set, and second the government of Guatemala has an issue in identifying the land rights of the forests. The two sources act with an allodial land right mentality; however, they do not have absolute possession, instead the government blurs exactly where to draw the lines on the rights. In addition a problem arises in how to correct the problem. The large corporations are acting solely out of self interest, while the farmers have more of a moral pluralism mind set. This will make the solutions more complicated because while the corporation’s needs could be ignored, the health of the land and the need of the farmers to survive and provide for their family will both have to considered. A conservation approach that incorporates a blend of organic farming and restoration could provide this correct mixture of solutions to protect the land and the people. However, for this to be successful first the government must take a more biocentric mentality and also establish a concrete definition of land rights.
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How would you propose the government shifts the mentality of land rights in Guatemala? It seems that both of these practices are based on a desire/need for money, will farmers be willing to change their practices in the wake of economic uncertainty of returns?
ReplyDeleteWhat other options exist aside from changing government, which can be incredibly difficult? What kind of campaigns exist or could be established in Guatemala to make the people care and make the changes happen themselves?
ReplyDeleteBetween the loggers and the farmers which takes a more utilitarian approach? Or rather does everyone take on the libertarian mindset?
ReplyDeleteSince monetary value seems to be of great importance in both scenarios, which side does the government reap more benefits from? By imposing laws to prevent deforestation will the country's GDP decrease by a lot? Therefore, does the government see the benefits of implementing these laws? Or are they making decisions strictly by assessing a cost-effective analysis, rather than a value-effective one?
How could societal and cultural changes help change the mentality of the government to a more biocentric one?
ReplyDeleteHow can the government instill a moral pluralistic view in corporations? Also, have corporations dealing with deforestation issues gained too much control over the forests?
ReplyDeleteWhere do the animals fall in this debate? Should their rights also considered? If so, what steps should the government take to address them?
ReplyDeleteWhat is the timber being used for? Is it being used in Guatemala or is it being outsourced to other countries? What are the ethical implications of this difference?
ReplyDeleteAre there any groups or organizations working to correct this problem through reforestation efforts? If so, how successful are they?
ReplyDeleteUnderneath the surface, are the parties involved offering any unethical deals to the government in order to continue their practices?
ReplyDeleteCould environmental education for the farmers allow for stricter land rights against the big corporations?
ReplyDeleteEconomies in the rainforest are already being affected by the negative effects of globalization. These effects, such as the exploitation of resources (forests), are seemingly irreversible because of the degredation of the land. How could these countries reclaim the barren land that once was a flourishing rainforest?
ReplyDeleteIs restoration a viable option because the restoration process takes a long time and if both these groups are needing the commons, then they may be using it faster then can it can be restored?
ReplyDelete