i’m currently writing an article about the Yasuní-ITT initiative in Ecuador. this piece and my research for it have been a capstone-like project for my time spent in Ecuador.
the basic idea: the Global North will pay Ecuador not to drill for oil in three sections of its untouched Amazon rain forest. This money, approximately US$3.5 billion over 10 years, will go directly to the state, towards conservation and development.
at my older blog Me In Quito, i’m keeping track of all newspaper activity for the project. it’s signing is immanent, we’re told, but the government continues to stall despite international approval. why this is happening is the thesis of the article i’m writing.
david (isaac) backer 