Marketing e conservação dos recursos naturais em Manacapuru - AM

Abstract

The need for establishing new forms of relationship between man and the environment has become evident since the Stockholm Convention, in 1972, where the term Sustainable Development was coined. The term was further established during the ECO 92 conference, in Rio de Janeiro, where the Agenda 21 document determined the parameters for achieving sustainable development. Since then, the implementation of sustainable development programs or practices have been countlessly attempted. Studies carried by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Brazil show that the majority of these attempts does not succeed, being incapable of promoting the necessary changes to achieve the aimed increase in quality of life, within the parameters of sustainable development. Considering the co-existence between sustainable initiatives and capitalism as opposing ideas, it is noticeable that the first are hampered by the second, preventing the achievement of its best results. Aiming to find a better equilibrium between sustainable initiatives and capitalism, in the sense of improving the life conditions of the people practicing sustainable development, the present research evaluates the possibility of reaching sustainable development goals while using and applying modern marketing tools, within the capitalist framework. For that, we applied a questionnaire to the small household farmers from Ramal Nova Esperança, in the township of Manacapuru, Amazonas, Brazil, to evaluate wether the use of marketing tools was a viable option, capable of bringing tangible gains to the population. The questionnaire evaluated the concept of development within the participants, as well as their work methods and work conditions, together with the random use of marketing practices. The conclusion reached was that modern marketing concepts can significantly contribute for the improvement of quality of life and for the conservation n of natural resources among the small household farmers in Ramal Nova Esperança, as long as other aspects of sustainable development are concurrently implemented in a systemic manner.