‘Guyana – the former British colony…is home to a fewer than a million people but it is also home to an intact rainforest larger than England…….But the soaring price of timber and gold, which is mined from the forested area, mean pressure to exploit its most valuable resource is building….. In a dramatic offer, the government of Guyana has said that it is willing to place its entire standing forest under the control of a British-led, international body in return for a bilateral deal with the UK that would secure development aid for the impoverished country and the technical assistance needed to make the change to a green economy. The deal would present the largest carbon offset ever taken. ….Guyana’s President, Bharrat Jagdeo, said the offer was a chance for Britain to make a ‘moral offset’ and underline its leadership on the most single issue facing the world – climate change.


what do you think Should Western governments ‘foot the bill’ for the protection of natural resources in developing countries?