You are a delegate to the World Earth Summit and must meet with other representatives from around the world to discuss the current dilemma with the world's rainforests. 

You will represent one of 4 different views on this crisis: Corporation (Business World), Scientist, Native Rainforest Resident, Native Rainforest Worker Employed by the Corporate World. 

Your mission is to take on the role of an individual who is directly affected by the destruction or the development of the tropical rainforests.  You will collect data that supports your point of view, as well as learn about what your opponents believe.  You will then prepare an argument from your collected data to present in a class debate.

Good Luck!

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Corporate World: With the world's population ever increasing, once abundant resources are quickly diminishing.  Tropical rainforests offer solutions to our problems: oil, lumber, medicines, and much more!  We're not destroying the rainforests, we're developing it, you see.  If we do not develop the small resources we have left, our lifestyle will cease to exist.  And very soon.  We are actually saving lives -- human lives, our lives.
      
      Information on Texaco in Ecuador  www.texaco.com/sitelets/ecuador/en/
      Amazon Oil Offensive Argument -- ftp.halcyon.com/pub/FWDP/Americas/amaznoil.txt
      Report on Contamination Levels and Treatment of Natives multinationalmonitor.org/hyper/mm0195.html

Scientist: The world's tropical rainforests are disappearing at an incredibly fast pace.  They once covered 14% of the earth's surface, and now only cover a mere 6%.  The greedy business world is largely responsible for this destruction.  We are not only losing trees and important plants that provide oxygen and other vital nutrients to our home, but we are quickly losing endangered animals and other species to fund someone's greed.  There is little time left to act: we must act now!

       Facts about Rainforests (including benefits) www.ran.org/new/kidscorner/about_rainforests/factsheets/
       Rainforest Destruction Case Studies  ran.org/what_we_do/rainforest_agribusiness/spotlight/case_studies/

Native Rainforest People: The air of my homeland used to be filled with sweet smells from the forest, laughter from the monkeys, and singing from the birds.  Today, these are masked by the drone of the giant bulldozers, trucks, and other equipment.  My home, this once beautiful rainforest, is being ripped apart before my eyes.  My people and I use the land without harming the native plants and animals.  But our way of life, our home, is now being shredded by these great machines.  Our provider of food, medicine, clothing, etc, is soon to be no more.
      
       Texaco Actions in Ecuador www.ibiblio.org/freeburma/boycott/oil/texaco.html
       Native People in Rainforests www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/people.html
       Project Rainforest: Loss of Native Peoples library.advanced.org/26252/evaluate/9.htm
       Rainforest Destruction Case Studies  ran.org/what_we_do/rainforest_agribusiness/spotlight/case_studies/
       Treatment of Natives www.umich.edu/~snre492/paul.html
       Culture of Natives vs. Changing Times www.mongabay.com/external/balanced_growth_amazon.htm

Native Rainforest People Employed by the Business World: We live in changing times.  My native village home is no longer the same -- I cannot make a decent living, feed my children, and provide everything I need to for my family.  I have recently been employed by an oil company.  I have been trained to operate equipment to help make roads from our village to certain parts of the rainforest.  I am incredibly happy to be able to make a living and provide for my family.  My employer, this oil company, has recently started providing our village with medicine, food, and other supplies.  How can this be bad for my family and me?
   
       Texaco Offensive Argument -- Report on Levels of Contamination and Treatment of the Natives multinationalmonitor.org/hyper/mm0195.html
          Treatment of Natives -- www.umich.edu/~snre492/paul.html
          Culture of Natives vs. Changing Times www.mongabay.com/external/balanced_growth_amazon.htm