<<Biblioteca Digital del Portal<<INTERAMER<<Serie Educativa<<Education for a Sustainable Future in the Americas
Colección: INTERAMER
Número: 67
Año: 1999
Autor: Eloísa Trellez Solís and Gustavo Wilches Chaux
Título: Education for a Sustainable Future in the Americas
North America: Less Biodiversity
In the North, where ecological systems tend to be younger and therefore less
complex,19 and where indigenous groups tend to be extremely small
and dispersed, political pressure is building to roll back policies designed
to preserve an already reduced spectrum of plant and animal life and protect
disappearing indigenous cultures. Mounting pressure results from the growing
scale of production and the pursuit of low-cost natural resources, both renewable
and non-renewable.
Ecological disturbance is compounded in the hemisphere, by the emphasis on
free trade arrangements. originating in the North. These agreements have made
the South increasingly vulnerable to the negative consequences of the ad
hoc, a posteriori regulatory climate in the North. While these pacts promote
increasing trade flows, they can also facilitate the export of hazardous production
processes, unsafe consumer goods, and toxic waste to the South where environmental
standards and health and safety regulations are weaker or more difficult to
enforce.20
Challenge for the Future
- To strengthen measures designed to protect fragile ecosystems from commercial development;
- To maximize the benefits of experience and knowledge from diverse cultures in advancing education for sustainability.