To ensure the long-term sustainability of Guyana’s natural resources

The majority of the world’s leading tropical forest conservation academics focus their efforts on the threatened forests of Amazonia and South-east Asia. Naturally, much less focus has been placed on areas that are less imminently threatened, yet it is these areas where conservationists may be able to benefit from the lessons learned elsewhere, and effectively manage development to ensure environmental sustainability.

Guyana yields an ideal opportunity to implement measures that combine conservation and development interests to ensure culturally, socially and ecologically sustainable development.

Guyana’s vast tropical forests are a haven for biodiversity, and are home to indigenous peoples retaining their cultural identity and traditional ways of life. With current low-intensity resource extraction these forests serve as a globally important carbon store, yet as industrial resource extraction expands into the interior, good environmental stewardship is required to maintain Guyana’s ecological integrity and ensure sustainable development.