Brasília, October 16, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - "There is a very clear consciousness nowadays that you can't protect the environment of the Amazon if you exclude the people who live there," the European Commission councillor in Brazil, Thierry Dudermel, affirmed this morning. He explained that the philosophy behind the application of resources by countries in the European Union for the preservation of the Brazilian Amazon has been changing and is no longer concentrated exclusively on the environmental aspect.

"It is also fundamental to improve the living conditions of people who live in the Amazon forest, through their own social development," the European Union representative underlined. (DAS)