Agriculture, environment and natural resources management — linkages
Environmental issues are as diverse as they are numerous. Issues surrounding water (including tenure, scarcity, competition, climate change, security, upstream-downstream effects, and the concepts of ‘blue’ and ‘green’ water) are crucially linked to agriculture and rural development. Members also noted the importance of natural resource management and highlighted the need to focus on sustainable land and water management, resource competition, desertification, and environmental degradation.
As soil is a major foundation for increasing productivity, it is a key concern of members. Soil mining, fertiliser use, policies of integrated soil fertility management, and the rehabilitation of degraded soils, were all identified as important issues. Organisations are also paying greater attention to the importance of biodiversity. Members noted that integrated approaches, which include agro-, marine and terrestrial biodiversity are needed. They also note that communities need to take greater responsibility for conserving biodiversity.
As fuel prices rise and supplies decrease, ‘peak’ oil scenarios, carbon emission ceilings and carbon trading are all gaining in importance. The links between climate change and energy security, trade, and agriculture will only grow more important over time. These issues are also linked intrinsically with unsustainable consumption patterns and the need for environmentally sustainable technologies.
Climate change
Member policies
Comments
One person has commented on this article.  1. Rural tourism development:: a key approach for sustainable manaCOODETUR Las Segovias de R.L., UnregisteredIn order to promote sustainable rural development, an important element is the promotion of rural tourism development, involving local communities and small and medium enterprises in the proces. For that reason, about 26 small rural turism enterprises decided to join forces to promote tourism development in 5 northern provinces of Nicaragua (Las Segovias) and form the first cooperative in Nicaragua for Tourism Development, called COODETUR Las Segovias de R.L. Among its members are hotels, restaurants, ecological farms, forestry farms, local handycraft groups, historians and tourism promotors. We strongly believe that sustainable development is only possible in poor rural areas if it is combined by ways of creating employment oportunities and incomes. In rural areas, most of the tourism atractions are directly related with nature and ecological production and hence is an ideal way to preserve these resources making it possible that people (tourists, travellers) pay to visit them bringing about local development in the proces.
For those interested to learn more about this inciative we invite them to visit our website www.coodetur.org
Related to the rural tourism development in Nicaragua, some members of the cooperative have iniciated a digital platform for rural tourism development which brings together all the different actors involved and at the same time offers a free oportunity for local, small and medium tourism enterprises to promote their services, products and tours / excursions on the Internet, being aware that this group in general does not have access to this form of promotion. For more details visit the platform at: www.vivanica.ning.com
Wim van der Donk
Vicepresident COODETUR Las Segovias R.L.
Equipo vivanica
Owner Hotel campestre El Pantano, Jalapa, Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua
(www.hotelelpantano.com)
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