Amazon Alive: A Decade of Discoveries 1999-2009 - WWF

Foreword
Ahmed Djoghlaf,
Executive Secretary,
Convention on Biological Diversity
The vital importance of the Amazon rainforest is
well known. As the largest tract of tropical
rainforest in the world, the region has unparalleled
biodiversity. It harbours one in 10 known species in
the world and one in five of all birds. The Amazon
rainforest supports the highest diversity of plant
species on Earth: depending where you are, you
can find from 150 to 900 individual trees per
hectare. The Amazon is also home to a diverse
array of indigenous communities, and its rich
natural resources base provides a source of
livelihoods for many both within and outside the
region.
However, this treasure trove of our planet has not
escaped the gigantic appetite of unsustainable
development. At least 17% of the Amazon forest
has been destroyed, and much more is severely
threatened as the destruction continues. In the
words of the respected Amazon ecologist Dan
Nepstad, “The Amazon is a canary in a coalmine
for the Earth.”
The loss of tropical rainforest has a profound and
devastating impact on the world because
rainforests are so biologically diverse. The 1,220
new species in this report illustrate the richness of
biodiversity found in this the world’s largest
rainforest and river basin, and also how much there
is still to learn about this incredible biome.
Many scientific explorers have ventured deep
into the unknown and spectacular reaches of the
Amazon and have made significant contributions to
increasing our knowledge of Amazonia. However,
2 amazon alive! I a decade of discovery 1999-2009
very basic work on the natural history of the
Amazon is still being conducted due to the current
lack of knowledge. The surface of the Amazon
has only been scratched and there is much that
remains unknown to scientists. The scientific world
is only just realising what indigenous people in
the Amazon have known for centuries: that many
ancestral cultures still alive in the Amazon have a
deep knowledge of the riches of the region; and
that this knowledge may prove to be essential for
the success of future efforts to preserve it.
In the face of increasing human pressure on the
planet’s resources, an effective protected area
system is vital for conserving ecosystems,
habitats and species. The Convention on
Biological Diversity (CBD)’s programme of work on
protected areas (www.cbd.int/protected) provides a
blueprint on how to establish protected areas, how
to manage them, how to govern them, and what
tools can be used to achieve the planned work.
It charts the way forward in detail and with clear
targets. The end result will be protected areas that
fulfil their key role of conserving in situ biodiversity
of the world. It is a framework for cooperation
between governments, donors, NGOs and local
people – without such collaboration projects cannot
be sustainable over the long term.
On this note, the Secretariat of the CBD would
like to congratulate WWF for supporting the Latin
American Network of Protected Areas
(REDPARQUES) by promoting a regional dialogue
and vision for the Amazon to implement the CBD
programme of work on protected areas.
The need for conserving the Amazon cannot
be better expressed than in the words of Chico
Mendes, the Brazilian rubber tapper and
environmental activist: “At first, I thought I was
fighting to save rubber trees. Then, I thought I was
fighting to save the Amazon rainforests. Now, I
realise I am fighting for humanity.”
Today, when the world is reeling under the threat
of climate change, conserving large intact tracts of
tropical rainforests assumes paramount
importance, not only for the people of the Amazon
countries, but for all the individuals of the world. In
this the International Year for Biodiversity, a shift
in the paradigm of development must begin, with
utmost urgency, to safeguard the Amazon biome’s
functionality and its incredible biodiversity.