The $8 million will be spent over 5 years. Grants will be targeted at terrestrial monitoring and protection of Kayapó land, as well as the development of sustainable economic activities for the Kayapó people. The grants will help conserve an area of 10.6 million hectares, (approximately 41,000 sq. mi.) which is about 3 percent of the Amazon or approximately equal in size to the countries of Guatemala or Iceland, or the U.S. state of Ohio. This is great news!

The Kayapó territories are rich in biodiversity and are located in an area of the Amazon that is suffering from deforestation. So it’s in the heart of the territory that most urgently needs protection.

Conservation International donated $4 million of the funds, with Brazil’s National Economic and Social Development Bank donating the other $4 million.

“It took us almost two years to create this fund, but it was worth struggling for it as it will bring climate and biodiversity benefits, besides contributing to the well-being of the Kayapó. This is a great victory for the Kayapó and for Brazil, which is setting an example to the world when it comes to conservation of indigenous lands,” said Fabio Scarano, Americas Vice President at Conservation International.

“This fund is an opportunity for our people to learn to work and earn a living. Money must also be used to oversee the Kayapó land, the Xingu River, and the boundaries of indigenous lands,” suggested Megaron Txucarramãe, a Board Member of Conservation International and Leader of the Kayapó.

“Hopefully, this will serve as a model for similar efforts in other parts of the world. We are very proud of our role in this fund and of our partnership with the Kayapó for the last 20 years, including, among many other things, the participation of chief Megaron Txucarramãe on our Board of Directors,” commented Russell Mittermeier, Conservation International’s President.

The August 16th to 20th rally is expected to draw around 800 Indians representing many of Brazil’s 233 tribes.   As well, all candidates in Brazil’s upcoming presidential election have been invited.  

The Indians hope to raise awareness and protest their treatment and the critical situation it has led to for many indigenous people of the Amazon.  As well, they will protest the government’s plans to build a series of huge dams and roads in the Amazon. 

The Indians have lived sustainably in the rainforest for many generations, and have the human right to continue.  Now as Brazil undergoes development, threats to that rainforest increase.  For the role the Indians play in maintaining the rainforest, which are the lungs of our planet, theirs are important voices for all of us.

Stewardship 101

Genesis, the first book of the Bible, tells the story of God creating the universe and Earth, the animals and plants, and human beings.  Human beings are then told to be stewards – to care for the plants and animals and our planet.  The ideal of stewardship includes the idea that our planet and nature don’t really belong to us.  They belong to God our Creator, and we’re trustees of what has been given to us.  Being a steward and caring for creation means acting in alignment with the line in Genesis in which God declares His creation to be good.  And when we don’t care for any part of our planet, we’re practicing poor stewardship.  “Being stewards of the earth is central to our identity as people of God,” Bruce Sanguin added.

Stewardship 201

However, there is some controversy.  One of the creation stories is that God created everything and put human beings in charge of the rest of creation – granted them dominion over creation.  Some “critics of Christianity and Judaism say that the word has been interpreted by the church and by believers in a way that gives them license to do whatever we want to do with creation,” Bruce explained.  Rather than being stewards, some people interpret having dominion as equalling the right to industrially dominate and even destroy our planet and the plants and animals.  The critics claim that “our voices have not been strong enough to be advocates for creation,” Bruce added.  In his opinion, however, it’s a weak argument.

Stewardship 301

Bruce Sanguin feels that the metaphor of stewardship doesn’t go far enough.  Science, especially evolutionary science, tells us that we are biologically kin with all of creation and there’s no disconnection.  “We need to fall back in love with creation as kin, and to start treating our biosystems and all creatures with the kind of respect we would treat any of our ancestors.  We need to realize our deep connection,” he suggested.

It’s A Wrap

A friend of mine emailed me from a cruise ship on the Amazon River with disturbing news.  The River is very muddy, much of which is runoff from deforested areas upriver.  Even worse – at one stop, the passengers were told that the Amazon Rainforest, the lungs of our planet, is receiving less rain and may begin to dry out.  I asked Bruce about it.  “We need to realize our deep connection.”  With a disconnection, “we can forget that the Amazon is the lungs of our planet.  We don’t know where our food comes from,” he replied.  “We’re so deeply disassociated from the earth and earth processes that we are enacting all kinds of atrocities ultimately on ourselves.”  So, the challenge for all of society is to get back into the right relationship that we have to live with creation.

Memorial Church has a sign with changing sayings beside Burrard Street, one of Vancouver’s busiest streets.  Several months ago, the sign read “There is no Planet B”.

You can learn more about Bruce Sanguin’s views and read his blog on his website (www.brucesanguin.com). The site also includes information about the books he has written, which include Darwin, Divinity and the Dance of the Cosmos, with the subtitle An Ecological Christianity.