A R i s i n g G l o b a l S u p e r p o w e r

A grouping acronym that refers to the countries of Brazil, Russia, India, and China: BRIC All deemed to be at a similar stage of newly advanced economic development – Symbol of the shift in global economic power away from the developed G7 France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom, USA, & Canada

It is estimated that BRIC economies will overtake G7 economies by 2027 They account for more than a quarter of the world's land area and more than 40% of the world's population

The ten largest economies in the world in 2050, measured in GDP (billions USD), according to Goldman Sachs

CategoriesBrazilRussiaIndiaChinaUSA Area51734 Population59213 Population Growth Labor Force57213 GDP Growth Rate Human Development Index* Exports Imports External Debt Electricity Consumption Mobile Phones54213 Internet Users57412

World's 6 th largest by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and is expected to become 5 th by the end of 2012 – Largest economy in Latin America – 2 nd largest economy in the western hemisphere

From 1950 to 2005 the population of Brazil grew from 51 million to approximately 187 million inhabitants! – Need: food! – Response: green revolution! Expanding development of cattle and crop raising BUT at the expense of the RAINFORESTS of the Amazon

“Green Ox” – cattle raised on hay & mineral salts – Exported to Asia, Europe & the Americas after the “mad cow” scares – Largest cattle herd in the world, with more than 80 million heads 80% of the planet's orange juice

Oil! – Brazil became self sufficient in terms of their oil production – The world's 15th largest oil producer

Deforestation of the Amazonian rainforests is a result of the following: – Clearing for cattle pasture – Places for people to live and subsistence farming – Infrastructure improvements (roads, bridges, etc.) – Commercial agriculture – Logging

Tropical rainforests (6-7% of the earth's surface) contain over 1/2 of all the plant and animal species in the world 57% of all rainforests remaining are located in Latin America, with 30% located in Brazil Atlantic coast of Brazil has lost 90-95% of its rainforest

2.4 acres per second: equivalent to two U.S. football fields 149 acres per minute 214,000 acres per day: an area larger than New York City 78 million acres per year: an area larger than Poland On average, 137 species become extinct everyday; or 50,000 each year!

Extinctions: plants, insects, animals, indigenous peoples, etc. Habitat fragmentation: This disturbs the animals' habitat and may force them to enter habitats which are already occupied Soil erosion and desertification Climate change: more carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, thus increasing the effects of global warming

Loss of culture: People who live in the rainforest depend on the natural environment for food, shelter, materials for cooking, clothing, etc. – There were an estimated 10 million Indians living in the Amazonian Rainforest five centuries ago. Today there are less than 200,000 Social conflicts and struggles over land and natural resources. Conflicts over racial and ethnic rights.