(introductory text...)

Environmental degradation
Wealth and well-being
Vulnerability
Fine-tuning the policy environment
A team approach
Conservation and sustainable development

Amazonia is so heterogeneous, with so many poles of development and environmental change scattered across the vast basin, that it is difficult to sum up trends and opportunities adequately. Our main message is that, in spite of the many difficulties encountered in moving towards sustainable development and conservation of resources, many positive trends are under way that auger well for the long-term future of the region.

Particularly impressive is the entrepreneurial spirit of so many small, medium-, and large-scale operators as they try new approaches to managing farms, ranches, plantations, and mineral operations. Across the board it is clear that individuals, cooperatives, growers' associations, and corporations are not prepared simply to wait for the government to tackle problems for them; rather they are prepared to seek their own solutions within their resource constraints.