Analysis12 June

Political threats to the Brazilian rainforest

Sergio Abranches
How can a supposedly communist legislator champion the interests of traditional landowners, and seek amnesty to illegal logging, often associated with violent land-grabbing and force-labor? The Brazilian House is right now discussing a bill proposing changes in the Forestry Code Law that does exactly that. The proposal under discussion was drafted by communist deputy Aldo Rebelo, a former Speaker of the House during President Lula’s first term in office. More »

Analysis21 April

Lula insists on a damned dam in the Amazon

Sergio Abranches

Amidst a judicial battle around the hydropower dam of Belo Monte, in the Brazilian Amazon region, the government has hastily auctioned the project. The 7-minute long bidding is being contested at the federal courts. More »

Op-Ed13 November

The Brazilian government celebrates the lowest ever level of deforestation in the Amazon

Preliminary satellite data points to the smaller amount of logging since measurement began. But can it be sustained?

Sergio Abranches More »