“Protected Areas of Latin America: Current Situation and Future Perspectives” is the new publication produced by IUCN South American Regional Office with the financial support of the Spanish Government and edited by Jörg Elbers.
The last chapter of this publication, called “The Future of Latin America’s Protected Areas”, was written by Edward Müller and Jörg Elbers. This chapter analyzes how climate change is affecting protected areas of the region, and mentions strategies and guidelines that could be useful in coping with those threats. The authors suggest the internalization of the Earth Charter as an ethical framework to create more sustainable societies. The following is an extract from this publication:
“We need a new social, managerial and political ethics; this is difficult but not impossible. We need to understand that we are part of a living Earth – Gaia -, this entails rights but also responsibilities. To make this possible we need a change in our minds and hearts (…..) The Earth Charter set the foundation to create a global sustainable society that respects nature. The Earth Charter should be recognized and internalized by humanity. This document makes a call to act with efficiency and promptness” (p. 199-200).
Bibliographic reference (publication available only in Spanish):
Elbers, J. (Editor) (2011). Las áreas protegidas de América Latina: Situación actual y perspectivas para el futuro. Quito, Ecuador, UICN, 227 p.