sustainable development 20 years on from the ... - José Eli da Veiga

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productivity and the integrity of fishery or forestry reserves, to mention just a few. Government
coordination failings result in policy inconsistencies, such as investing in environmental protection,
while at the same time supporting activities with high and sometimes irreversible environmental
costs (externalities). 6
The key <strong>sustainable</strong> <strong>development</strong> challenges facing the region remain the same as before, but are
situated in a new and more demanding context of climate change and a rearrangement of global economic
power. The challenges are to eradicate poverty and eliminate inequalities; reverse the destruction of
ecosystems that provide habitat for the region’s rich biological diversity and a source of income for local
populations; achieve local <strong>development</strong> (both rural and urban) that guarantees human security and
satisfies the economic needs of the citizens of the region’s countries; and consolidate institutions that
ensure continuous improvement in integrating the three spheres of <strong>development</strong> and prevent backsliding
in adverse situations, by promoting full participation by key actors such as women, young people and
indigenous peoples, among others.
Poverty, hunger, soil degradation and overexploitation of natural resources are part of a vicious
cycle that generates deep crises in food security, human <strong>development</strong> and sustenance, since most people
with high rates of vulnerability, marginality and food insecurity live on land and in ecosystems that are
fragile and degraded.
Furthermore, the region also faces new challenges, many of which seemed less urgent at the time
of the Earth Summit. Hence the importance of making progress on climate change adaptation, which
requires action in different domains practically throughout the region.
The good news is that the situation in Latin America and the Caribbean today is very different
from what it was in 1972, when the environment appeared only very marginally on the public agenda;
or in 1992, when the region was emerging from a “lost decade” of low growth, high inflation and
external debt constraints; or in <strong>20</strong>02, when it was emerging from a decade of reforms that had
weakened government structures and was facing new economic crises. Despite the recent world
economic upheaval, the region has enjoyed nearly a decade of relatively high growth; inflation is under
control in nearly all countries and, in general, stable economic conditions prevail. The economic
situation, combined with a new wave of social policies, has made it possible to reduce poverty indices.
States are more robust, and the region is playing an increasingly important role in the world economy.
Some countries have started to reinforce their policies on productive <strong>development</strong>, innovation, science
and technology, and have returned to <strong>development</strong> planning. In much of the region there is still an
opportunity to take advantage of the demographic dividend by investing in universal access to basic
services and quality education (see chapter I). Latin America and the Caribbean is thus better placed
than ever to lay the foundations for change towards sustainability.
6
Externalities are external impacts of a given economic activity on the environment and social well-being which
are not measured through the pricing system. In other words, the social cost of the impact or the environmental
damage caused by the economic activity is not reflected in its cost structure or in the price of the product
resulting from the activity. In fact, society is implicitly subsidizing the product to the extent of the cost of the
social loss or externality incurred as a result of its production (Acquatella and Bárcena, <strong>20</strong>05, page 30). The
challenge that arises in this regard is to effectively internalize this external cost in the pricing system.