Find
out about:
- The WorldWide
Fund for Nature (WWF), WorldWide Fund in Canada & USA,
Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, the International Union
for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and UNESCO, United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation,
have all been very involved in supporting plans to arrest
deforestation.
- Survival International
is a worldwide organisation which helps tribal people.
- The International
Council for Bird Preservation (ICBP), works to save endangered
birds.
- Foundation
Amazonie, was set up in September 1991 by Belgian film-maker
Jean-Pierre Dutillex. Donations towards the purchase of strips
of rainforest in the upper Solimnoes River region of the Amazon
Basin to create a national park three times the size of Belgium
were invited - have they reached the £3 million / 5
million US$ needed?
Rainforest can
be purchased and so protected through the Rainforest Action
Group (www.ran.org/kids) and they run an International Children's
Rainforest Network (www.sierraclub).
Tropical Rainforest
timbers are hardwoods. Temperate Forests are also being felled
for similar industrial purposes - paper products, furniture
etc. Think about all the items you use that are made from timber
and that you dispose of: paper cups & plates, fast-food
containers, disposal napkins & towels, writing paper &
newsprint. Use your own shopping bag at the store instead of
plastic carriers!
Think about recycling
programmes and how you can contribute. Is there such a facility
near you? How good are you at using it? Over the course of a
week, make a note of the garbage / rubbish that you could/should
recycle rather than just disposing of it in the rubbish bin.
Not all of it will come from timber but much of it will be using
non-replenished raw materials.
Think about other
items you might purchase that come from rainforests: plants
& animals - bromeliad houseplants, parrots & iguanas
& other reptiles; shells & wooden souvenirs; furs &
reptile skins; gold & precious metals used in jewellery
are often mined in rainforest areas. Think about the effect
your purchase could have had on the destruction of the rainforest.
Some people do
not support companies which exploit and destroy rainforest.
They refuse to buy / boycott their products. They consider that
if everyone unites, company revenues will go down and there
will be less profits and so the company will reconsider its
practices. Consumer power is very influential and many companies
and organisations have recognised the importance of protecting
the rainforests. In 1989, Friends of the Earth launched a Rain
Forests: protect them! campaign. In 1989, 100 British companies,
including Body Shop & Habitat, agreed to stop using hardwoods
unless they came from properly managed forests. Find out what
is happening now in the UK and in the USA.
Remember, knowledge
is power. Find out what is happening. Find out who the key players
are in changing the negative practices. Can you change what
is taking place - even by the smallest amount? Every little
helps.
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