Brazil change under Lula administration raises COP27

Presence of the future president at the climate conference United nations It is seen as a hope for the resumption of the environmental character lost in its shadow Bolsonaro. “The world is waiting for Brazil,” says the former environment minister. Upon leaving the presidency of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro It is not expected at the meeting of heads of state to be held within the framework of the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27), to be held in Egypt This Sunday (11/06) until November 18th. With emphatic names like Joe Bidenthe leader of the United States, one of the most anticipated attendees is that of the next Brazilian president: Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Still without authority to determine the direction of the negotiations of the Brazilian delegation, the election winner against Bolsonaro Must attend the meeting organized by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), in the second week of negotiations.

“Attend the Lola It is a very positive sign, and it is a sign of a country turning into the world after years as a pariah,” commented Isabella Teixeira, former Minister of environment Who will be one of the presidential advisors at the climate conference in Egypt.

In an interview with DW, Teixeira He stated that there is a great demand from important delegations for meetings with the transitional government. Discussions are expected to go beyond international cooperation in order to preserve Amazon.

Teixeira declares: “Brazil will come renewed, guided by its democracy, by its great technical capabilities in science, by its youth and its indigenous peoples. The world awaits for Brazil.”

High emissions and deforestation

Under the chairmanship of the current minister environmentJoachim Litt, the official delegation sees COP 27 as a moment to reaffirm the commitments of all countries to mitigate climate change, particularly the largest emitters, via email to DW.

after, after ChinaUnited State, IndiaIndonesia and RussiaBrazil is the sixth largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world, notes a dedicated platform for this topic maintained by the World Resources Institute (WRI), with information collected through 2019.

Since then, the numbers have only gotten worse, as shown Stella HirschmannHe is a specialist in the Climate Monitor who follows the negotiations in Egypt. He criticizes that “2021 was the fourth year in a row that national emissions rose, primarily driven by increased deforestation, year after year.

Parallel to the official authorities, the burden Carbon Dioxide They are released into the atmosphere annually by the country by Greenhouse Gas Emission Estimation System (Seeg), a project of 77 organizations led by the Climate Observatory. The latest survey showed that emissions in 2021 reached their highest level in nearly two decades, with 2.42 billion total tons of carbon dioxide (tCO2e).

Overall reduction in emissions Carbon Dioxide It is the key for the world to reach the goal set out in the Paris Agreement: limit global warming to 1.5°C compared to pre-industrial times by the end of the century.

He added, “The Brazilian official that reaches negotiations with representatives of the current Brazilian government It has a climatic identity that ranges from flat land to denial, but it significantly causes high emissions and deforestation,” comments Teixeira.

omission and isolation

As soon as he arrives presidencyin 2019, Bolsonaro warned that Brazil It will not host, as planned three years ago, COP25. The negative message reverberated and the country’s image on the international scene deteriorated with each edition of the conference.

“The data only showed the destruction of the Amazon rainforest. COP26in Glasgowthe government hid deforestation data from the Prodes,” Hirschman notes, noting that the information is released annually by the National Institute for Space Research (Inpe), in mid-November.

Behind the scenes, the government believes Bolsonaro Emphasis on the theme of energy in meetings and events in the official suite. “Even in the energy sector, the news is bad. Seeg has shown that emissions from this activity are the highest since the 1970s,” Hirschman highlights.

In the farewell climate conference, the international isolation of the current government seen in previous COPs must remain. “There has been not only four years of abandonment, but there has been a declared war against the environment and climate agenda, against indigenous peoples, the Amazon, against the same federal agencies that care about the environment,” Carlos Rittel, a public policy specialist at Norwegian Rainforest Foundation.

“We, as a country, want to be part of the solution again, not part of the problem, as they have in the past four years. Civil society has prepared a lot for this transition, and we have very specific proposals to discuss, all of which are science-based,” says Anna Toni, Director Executive Director of the Clima e Sociedad Institute.

Focusing on the future Brazil

Without dialogue with Bolsonaro’s government, civil society grew in number, international dialogue increased and gained more and more space in COPs. Since 2019, organizations have been running Brazil’s Center for Climate Action, which was set up to highlight climate action in the country.

“Unfortunately, we still come to Egypt divided, with one wing of the federal government, one wing of civil society and one of the Amazon governors. The hope is that we get to the next COP together. The hope and determination to be a key player in the fight against climate change,” says Anna Toni.

At COP 27, Lula must show that he will resume policies to reduce deforestation in the Amazon that were abandoned under Bolsonaro and have a greater commitment to climate protection, Rittle assesses.

“The Amazon fund was negotiated during Lula’s administration, as well as the objectives of the national policy on climate change. However, the resumption of these policies must be adapted to the times of 2023, with the urgency that we have to deal with themes,” adds Rittl.

Last week, the Brazilian Forum of Non-Governmental Organizations and Social Movements for Environment and Development (FBOMS) sent Lula a letter requesting that Brazil be returned to the center of global climate negotiations and that the future president indicate Brazil’s readiness to host the climate summit. in 2025.

For Isabella Teixeira, it’s time for Brazil to decide what role and position it wants in the world. “It’s a country full of contradictions, with a lot of work to come, but it has alternatives and many uniquenesses, like the Amazon. We don’t need to copy anyone’s model, we have to know what we’re going to do with the wealth that we have in the country.”

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