Link to article: https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/14/world/rainforest-alliance-brazil-indonesia-congo-intl-hnk
Brazil, Indonesia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo have made a formal partnership on rainforest conservation, after decades of conversation. With the election of Brazil’s new president Lula he promised to seek out this alliance to further pressure the rich to finance this conservation. One of the main goals of this project is to reduce CO2 in the atmosphere and reduce the greenhouse effect. The 3 countries contain most of the world’s rainforests. A current main focus point of the group is how to find a sustainable funding mechanism to stop deforestation. Brazil is also working to get more Amazonian countries to join the alliance.
I think this alliance is important as it is a start to protecting our world’s most important ecosystems. Stopping the destruction of the world’s largest carbon sinks will protect the collective health of the world, and is a necessity for all living things. All of these places are in dire need of environmental protection as mining, farming, and illegal drug operations destroy the landscape. If single states don’t have enough power to enforce laws and rules as it is, then they need to look for outside resources to help solve the problem. I think that, although this is not a solution to global environmental problems, this is a step in the right direction. If this example of a greater global environmental alliance is successful, it will only encourage new projects and innovation. I think each stakeholder should look to even further environmental protections in general, getting more states involved and broadening the scope of the plans.
This article reflects much on how to solve the collective goods problem. Forming new diplomatic alliances based on identity issues, in this case on a shared environment. This constructivist based friendship will help solve problems that are not just based on one state’s interest, but rather a global problem.