ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book outlines the Pantanal which is a 140,000 km square complex of savannah wetlands dependent on a natural flood pulse, draining the highland savannah forest plateau at the heart of South America. The biodiversity, the low intensity cattle ranching and abundant fisheries are threatened by damming for hydro-electricity and water supply, urban growth, and agricultural intensification in the high plateau area surrounding the wetlands. The book brings together the expertise not of those with a cursory, superficial, monochromatic view of the Pantanal, but of those who have spent a lifetime living in, researching, characterising, campaigning and promoting sustainable management for the area, with a passion and enthusiasm, a determination and a vision, that are both contagious and humbling.
