Italy & WWF: a winning partnership for the Amazon

Protecting global environmental resources from human interference without denying local populations the right to economic development. This is the goal of an ambitious new conservation project launched by environmental organisation WWF together with the Italian Environment ministry. The importance of the Amazon Keystone Initiative, according to the ministry’s director general, Corridor Clini, “lies in that it brings together the two objectives of protecting natural resources sustainably and developing the livelihoods of indigenous populations in harmony with their surroundings”.

Can a partnership strategy involving institutions, NGOs and local governments committed to a common objective actually work?

Generally, it’s the best method. Public interventions that finance programmes carried out by public, or UN agencies, tend to lack effectiveness and the transaction costs involved in supporting the institutions involved in the project end up being greater than the resulting benefits in developing countries. On the other hand, partnerships between governments and organisations operating directly on the field are much more effective as resources are used directly in the countries they are destined to.

What contribution can the Italian government give to protecting the global environment?

The Amazon region is crucial to the protection of the world environment as well as being a decisive resource to Brazil’s development. Italy aims to contribute by supporting the sustainable management of resources, on the one hand, and on the other by promoting economic development tied to the forest resource. Our objective is to strengthen the growth of local communities that coexist with the Amazon’s natural resources.

There is much debate about bio fuels, that have jumped from being a solution to being a problem. What position does the Italian Ministry for the Environment take?

From a purely energetic point of view we support the production of bio fuels, but only as long as their production doesn’t have a negative effect on the environment, on biodiversity and on food security. We believe that the making bio fuel from corn, as is being done in the United States, and has been suggested for the EU, is not the best solution: growing corn for fuel means an intensive use of fertilizers and water that is not matched by a high energetic return. Sugar cane bio fuels, on the other hand, are energy efficient and do not compete with the production of other food. We should certainly give priority to so called “second generation bio fuels”, which are those that use the residual non food parts of current crops, rather than whole crops specifically grown for bio fuel.

The Italian environment ministry: a road map for the Amazon

As well as being a tremendous cultural and economic resource, the Amazon is one of the global ecosystem’s key regions. Today it is under threat from intensive agriculture, deforestation and exploitation geared at meeting the international market’s needs, rather than those of indigenous populations.

The WWF has partnered with the Italian government for a 3 year action plan that will focus on three of the Amazon’s most vulnerable regions:

Arpa – Amazon Region Protected Areas, will work with the Brazilian government to conserve specific areas of the rainforest;
Acre – Purus, a region bordering with Perù, will be the focus of a programme to protect natural water resources, flora and fauna and to reduce the impact of the Interoceanic highway;
Intenez – Marmorè, on the border with Bolivia, is under threat from the construction of the Madeira dams, the joint project here aims to create and protect a green corridor that will prevent the loss of biodiversity.

The ministry will also work in Italy to raise awareness about the Amazon and the environment, in particular it will promote capacity building within Italian organisations working in Brazil and within Italian schools.

Find out more

www.wwf.org

www.wwf.it