The Environment

It is undeniable that there is a belief in economic development, understood as the growth of production without limits. Despite its dissonance with the modern concept of sustainable development, this belief, which has stood the test of time, continues to hinder the desired relationship of synergy and co-operation between the economic and environmental spheres. New production systems, with the advance of new technologies, have also accelerated the depletion of natural and environmental resources, further reducing the age-old basis of sustainability. As far as the scientific community is concerned, it is likely that environmental degradation, which is increasingly accelerated and multidimensional, is exceeding the limits of sustainability and leading nature to irreversible deterioration, given the environmental liabilities that are accumulating. And although a new era of sustainability is on the way, overcoming its causes, both in urban and rural areas, is still a challenge. The search for a step forward in improving the relationship between society and nature is what motivated this book, which is not limited to political boundaries, although its main focus is on Mato Grosso do Sul.