Demography and territorial transformation: half a century of change in the Amazonian Region of Ecuador

A large population can promote economic growth (a baby could be a future tax payer), can generate new opportunities for technological innovation (a baby can be a future genius and innovator), and can contribute to a dynamic economy (more consumers and more shared costs). However, this is possible only if the social and economic conditions of a society are the necessarily required. Would the population growth in Amazonian Ecuador be sufficiently large as to guarantee more poverty and social conflict in the short and long term, or will it be a factor for development?. The Amazonian region has the highest birth rate in Ecuador. The population has grown 16 times over the last 60 years. The absence of basic services and education promotes high birth rates, especially on indigenous people. There is evidence that population growth (births and migration) promotes deforestation in the Amazonian region. The present essay is a synthesis of demographic change and its effects on deforestation, the agricultural frontier, urbanization and the indigenous strategies to confront this change. A population under rapid growth can contribute to the economy and social stability, only if the necessary conditions for education and available employment are met. These last characteristics have been particularly absent in the history of Amazonian Ecuador.

• Main Author: Jarrín-V., Pablo Santiago (author)
• Other Authors: Tapia Carrillo, Luis (author), Zamora, Giannina (author)
• Format: article
• Language: spa
• Published: 2017
• Subjects: demografía; Demografía; deforestación; estrategia indígena; frontera agrícola; urbanización; ecología
• Online Access: https://revistas.flacsoandes.edu.ec/eutopia/article/view/2913