Declaration on Andean Ecosystems

The 4^th National Conference and International Conference on "Paramos" (high plateau grassland ecosystems) and Cloud Andean Forests, which took place in Malaga, Santander, Colombia on November 1999 -including representatives from Colombia, Venezuela and Costa Rica- summarized its viewpoints in a declaration. Click here to read the "International and IV National Páramos and Altoandean Forest Conference".

The declaration is a well balanced analysis of the situation being faced by people and the environment, where many -including lower ranking government officials, academics, environmentalists, local peoples- support the conservation of these vulnerable ecosystems, while a few -politicians, higher ranking officials and corporations- only act in their own interest. As a result, a draft bill for the protection of the "paramo" ecosystem "has been sleeping for more than a decade on the desks of the Colombian Ministry of the Environment." The declaration ends with a call for action to protect these ecosystems and their people, including 16 specific demands.

Source: WRM's bulletin Nº 29, December 1999

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