ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the steps that provide a livelihood in the forests so that a transition can be designed to a longer-range view while the forests are protected by their productivity. Tropical forests occur around the world at low latitudes where temperatures and rainfall are sufficiently high. A map of such forests would show large areas in central Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. Throughout Latin America, tropical forest clearing typically takes place in three stages: road construction, colonization, and cash crop production. Tropical forests are the most intense expression of that biological diversity; they are estimated to contain at least half and perhaps two thirds of all species on earth. The people striving to slow the forest destruction have recognized the value of tropical forests and their diversity--the range of goods and services that these forests provide today and are likely to provide in the future.
