Manaus – The deputy governor of Amazonas, José de Oliveira, proposed, on Wednesday (29), that exchange take place between university students of his state and of Saudi Arabia. The invitation was made during a meeting between Oliveira and a group of Saudi students visiting Brazil, currently in Manaus.
“I believe that our and Saudi universities may promote exchange that could be beneficial for both sides,” said Oliveira. “I believe that the state of Amazonas and Saudi Arabia may discuss the development of bilateral projects,” said the deputy governor. At the meeting, the Saudi delegation was in the company of students from the Federal University of Amazonas (Ufam).
During the meeting, the environment and participation of youths in conservation were among the main themes. “You, the young ones, must keep in mind that nothing justifies development not respecting nature,” said Oliveira.
“We will have an important meeting about the environment in Rio de Janeiro and need Saudi support,” added the deputy governor to the head of the Saudi delegation, Yousef Al Saadon, deputy minister for Economic and Cultural Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Relations of the Arab country, referring to the Rio+20 conference, to take place in 2012. “Those living in the forest need economic compensation for what is extracted from it,” pointed out Oliveira.
Saadon said he agrees with future cooperation during the meeting in Rio de Janeiro and pointed out the importance of union between youths for the preservation of natural resources. “Oil will not last for ever, but our human resources will. Youths are our main riches,” he pointed out.
Visit to Ufam
Before the meeting with Oliveira, the youths visited the Ufam campus, where they saw a talk by Environmental Science post-graduate deputy coordinator Andrea Waichman. She presented a panorama of the Amazon, its population, the great variety of species of animals and plants that make up the biome and the history both of devastation and of preservation of the forest.
Students like Abdulrahman Abdulraihm, a 23-year-old architecture student, point out that this was the first time they received more detailed information about the Amazon. “We knew neither the Brazilian people, nor the nature of the country. Today we were able to grasp a better understanding of the people and environment here,” he pointed out.
“I thought that the Amazon was a huge forest without population,” said Badr Alamri, aged 23, who is going to medical school. “Now I know there are institutions and projects for the preservation of the forest. The Amazon should be considered a global matter. A large part of the oxygen we breathe comes from here, and there are many animal species that must be preserved,” he finished off.
After the talk, the speakers visited “Sauim de Coleira” Project, which cares for animals from the region that were run over or ill-treated. The project, which is managed by the university, has been in operation since 2002 and houses species like monkeys, birds and sloths.
*Translated by Mark Ament
