I think it is important to prevent the destruction of the Amazon Rainforest and improve the quality of life for the people who live there. We need to be creative and effective with lots of different ways of achieving this and it can only be possible by providing alternative solutions to destruction.
Rubber Tapping: this is a traditional way of life for many people living in the Amazon Rainforest since the start of the century. It is not damaging the forest as it does not require the trees to be cut down for the latex to be extracted. Palm Fruits and Palm Hearts: the fruits of the Acai Palm are used to make a juice, which is rich in minerals. A single palm tree produces up to 20kg of fruit per year.
Although the palm tree has to be felled to extract the palm hearts, the ease of replanting the trees in the middle of the forest and their quick regeneration, makes this a sustainable solution than large-scale logging. The biggest importers of palm hearts from the Amazon are France, Canada, the US, Spain, Japan, Holland and Belgium. Fruits and Nuts: there is a growing attraction for new products from the Amazon, particularly vitamins, minerals, exotic fruits, nuts and spices. These can be sold nationally and internationally.
The camu-camu fruit contains a higher concentration of vitamin C than any other fruit known in the world. It is imported to the US for the production of vitamin tablets. Brazil nuts are gathered by many of the tribes in the Amazon and they are their main source of income. Community Based Fisheries: lots of people in the Amazon obviously want to use the fish stocks, but an economic alternative is to set up community based fisheries operated in a sustainable and ecological way.
Pen Pals: I think it would be great fun and beneficial to all schoolchildren in the UK to have a pen pal from a child who lives in the Amazon Rainforest. We could try and understand how they live, and it would encourage future generations to learn and develop as the world changes. Children are our future, so what could be more appropriate than generations of young people keeping in contact. The UK Government could make it part of the Curriculum.