What is progress?

I was reflecting on an ebook I read by Survival International about how progress and development can harm native people and their natural environment. I was sad when I read that as I love nature and I have always admired how native people adapt well to their environment for thousands of years and live in harmony with nature. But many of them are suffering from loss of lifestyle and land when the government and developers are intruding and taking away their land for development.

Many native people could not adapt well to modern lifestyle because they are more suited to living in a natural environment.

"It is not that the Yanomami do not want progress, or other things that white people have. They want to be able to choose and not have change thrust upon them, whether they want it or not.


I am not saying I am against progress. I think it is very good when whites come to work amongst the Yanomami to teach reading and writing and to plant and use medicinal plants. This for us is progress. What we do not want are the mining companies which destroy the forest and the miners, who bring so many diseases. These whites must respect our Yanomami land. The miners bring guns, alcohol and prostitution and destroy all nature wherever they go.


For us this is not progress. We want progress without destruction."


- Davi Kopenawa, Yanomami shaman, Brazil, 2003

"What kind of development is it when the people lead shorter lives than before? They catch HIV/AIDS. Our children are beaten in school and won't go. Some become prostitutes. They are not allowed to hunt. They fight because they are bored and get drunk. They are starting to commit suicide. We never saw that before. Is this 'development'?"

- Roy Sesana, Gana Bushman, Botswana, 2005

Source:
"Progress can kill" - Survival International