Land Use and Amazon Rainforest Vocabulary

A comprehensive set of vocabulary terms regarding environmental science, land management, and the social groups within the Amazon Rainforest based on lecture notes.

land-use conflict

disagreements between different groups of people about what to do with land

Native Amazonians

people who have adapted to and lived in the Amazon Rainforest for a very long time

indigenous

plant, animal or person that lives in the place it is originally from (native)

environmentalists

people who study and protect Earth

biodiversity

lots of healthy, different plants and animals in an environment

rubber tappers

people who collect sap (latex) from rubber trees to make money

sustainable

living in a way that keeps the planet healthy- supports the well-being of current and future generations

miners

people who extract (remove) valuable minerals, metals, and other resources from the earth

renewable resources

natural materials that can be replenished or replaced relatively quickly through natural processes (ex: sunlight, wind, water, plants, trees)

non-renewable resources

natural resources that we can’t regrow or get back because it takes so long (ex: coal, oil, gas, gold)

cattle ranchers

people who live on cleared land and raise animals (sell as food)

loggers

people who cut down trees for different purposes such as timber production, paper manufacturing, and other wood-based products

deforestation

process of clearing or removing large areas of forests or trees

clear-cutting

a method of logging where all or almost all trees in a specific area are cut down at once., leaving land bare