This book is a compilation of recent developments in land, ecosystem,
and water management in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro. The state
is located in the biodiversity hotspot of the Atlantic Forest (Mata
Atlântica), a biome characterized by high biological diversity and
endemism. At the same time the state of Rio de Janeiro emerged to one of
the economic hubs in Latin America. This development process has been
accompanied by population growth, industrialization, urbanization, as
well as consumption and degradation of land and water resources. In the
past years many efforts have been made to stop or at least slow down
these degradation processes and restore degraded environments with the
overall goal to bring together sustainable management of natural
resources, nature conservation, and economic development.
An overview is provided of the different strategies and tools that have
been developed in the fields of agriculture, ecosystem management and
biodiversity, integrated water management, land restoration, disaster
risk reduction and climate change adaptation, as well as environmental
governance and economic instruments. This book covers a wide spectrum
from applied research to science‐policy interfaces, planning concepts,
and technical tools and has a model character for other rural areas in
Latin America. Target groups are scientists, practitioners, policy
makers and graduate students in the field of environmental management.
The different chapters are written by researchers and practitioners of
the German‐Brazilian project INTECRAL (Integrated Eco Technologies and
Services for a Sustainable Rural Rio de Janeiro), the rural development
program Rio Rural under the state secretary for agriculture and animal
husbandry, as well as invited scientists from Brazilian universities and
research institutes. It bridges existing gaps between science, policies,
and practice in rural development.