The correlations between poverty and deforestation in Brazilian Amazon region

Marcelo Bentes Diniz, Jorge Eduardo Macedo Simões, Vanessa da Paixão Alves and Márcia Jucá Teixeira Diniz

Journal of Economic Studies, 2025, vol. 53, issue 6, 1149-1171

Abstract: PurposeThis paper examines the trade-off between poverty reduction and deforestation prevention in the Brazilian Amazon, a crucial region for achieving SDGs 1, 13 and 15 by 2030. It analyzes the poverty deforestation relationship to support policies addressing both issues.Design/methodology/approachUsing a three-stage generalized method of moments (3SLS), the study analyzes data from 2006 to 2017, treating poverty and deforestation as endogenous variables, with adjustments for heteroscedasticity and endogeneity.FindingsThe findings suggest an inverse relationship between the number of Bolsa Família beneficiaries and deforestation, showing that reducing poverty does not necessarily come at the expense of deforestation control. And, therefore, there is no trade-off in the Brazilian Amazon to achieve SDGs 1 and 2 as opposed to SDGs 13 and 15.Practical implicationsThe practical implications emphasize the necessity of aligning poverty reduction policies with deforestation control policies, showcasing the effectiveness of the Bolsa Família Program to fight poverty and the need for more policies that promote sustainable activities while addressing challenges like low institutional capacity to reduce deforestation and land speculation.Originality/valueThis study brings new insights regarding the indetermination of the relationship between poverty and deforestation that appears in studies on the Brazilian Amazon. Research by the Choices Institute (2023), Santiago and Couto (2020), Sathler et al. (2018), Cortes and D'Antona (2014) and Guedes et al. (2012) suggests a positive correlation between poverty and deforestation. In contrast, studies by Diniz (2017), Celentano et al. (2012) and Wunder (2001) do not support this hypothesis.

Keywords: Legal Amazon; Poverty eradication; Environmental sustainability; Deforestation; Generalized method of moments (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eme:jespps:jes-11-2024-0802

DOI: 10.1108/JES-11-2024-0802

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