| Reconciling conservation with the improvement of living conditions among communities settled in the Amazon forest has been a challenge for the communities themselves, the Brazilian government, and national and international NGOs. Despite the great interest in this issue among scientists, development and conservation agencies, and politicians, uncertainty prevails regarding the actual deterioration of Amazon ecosystems and the improvement in living conditions of the communities involved.; Creation of extractive reserves in Brazil was an attempt to resolve the issue. However, after years of experimentation, neither forest conservation nor improvement of the rubber tappers' living conditions have been achieved; deforestation is increasingly accentuated within the reserves, while the communities confront severe economic hardships.; This dissertation examines proposals to improve the economic viability of extractive activities conducted by families in the Antimari State Forest, Acre, Brazil. One strategy was to diversify the product base, exploiting under-utilized resources and developing markets for new products extracted from the forests. Extraction of timber and non-timber products was examined as a major additional activity.; Farming systems methodology was used, including participatory observation of the activities in each household. Factors limiting production were identified and a set of alternatives drawn, including timber forest products such as lumber, and non-timber forest products such as heart-of-palm, essential oils, and handicrafts. Using linear programming, a simulation of the current situation was constructed as a base to analyze other alternatives. Sample households were sorted into five categories according to their primary economic activities (and income levels), as well as location within the reserve.; Findings demonstrated that rubber extraction is not a profitable activity and should be replaced by more valuable products. Potential for sustainable timber extraction and exploitation of non-timber products was demonstrated under appropriate conditions of property, production infrastructure and organization, sustainable management, post-harvest processing, and transportation and marketing. Revenues from these products could increase the gross return per unit of labor input up to ten times the current levels. |
