The recent history of the Brazilian Amazon is marked by rapid population growth and an explosive increase in deforestation. In the last 50 years, deforestation has gone from a mere 0.5% in 1975 to 21% in 2021. Put together, the accumulated destruction of around 86 million hectares of forests is equivalent to the sum of the areas of Spain and Italy. In addition, extensive areas of remaining forests are degraded by fires and illegal logging. Finally, the local population quadrupled in the same period, from about 7 million in 1970 to approximately 28 million people in 2021.

This process was accompanied by serious social conflicts and resulted in the worst of all possible scenarios: environmental destruction, low quality of life for the population, an economy with limited growth, and very high carbon emissions. In fact, in 2019, the Brazilian Amazon contributed less than 9% of the country’s GDP and generated 48% of Brazil’s Greenhouse Gas emissions. The majority of these were due to deforestation and fires.

The Amazon region is suffering from record deforestation rates, violence, and worsening social conditions. However, each of the factors that contribute to the current crisis presents elements that can serve as a foundation for sustainability in the region. This context constitutes the Amazon paradox, namely that it is possible that a new model of regional development, one based on the sustainable use of the forest’s natural resources, may emerge from an apparently unsolvable situation.