The Western Amazon Region in the Andean foothills and forelands of Colombia,

Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia constitutes a vast belt of tropical rainforests in geographically

variable settings. This chapter integrates environmental and human

approaches for an overview of these settings as a retrospective account from the

region’s early occupation until modern times. It consequently tries to make a

difference by focusing theWestern Amazonian region as a whole and emphasizing

the ways and patterns on how its forest resources have been used and governed.

The chapter examines the Amazonian regions of Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and

Bolivia from both natural and human perspectives as well as their spatial and

temporal developments. The chapter shows how the sub-Andean environment

and different phases of human development have acted as