ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on secondary data and fieldwork that explore the historical and geographical expansion of soybean plantations in Roraima, examining some of their social, economic, cultural and environmental impacts. The state of Roraima lies in the northernmost part of Brazil, sharing borders with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the Republic of Guyana. Roraima is one of the nine political units falling within the Brazilian Amazon river basin. Its landscapes encompass flat areas, mountains, forests and savannas. The settlement history of the Brazilian Amazon is a relatively recent phenomenon, only dating back to the twentieth century. The fortunes of the Brazilian rubber industry turned during World War II, when Japanese forces took over the Asian plantations. Brazil then became the sole supplier for the Allies, leading to an upsurge in rubber businesses and an influx of 55,000 migrants, again mostly from Northeast Brazil.
