brazil

Record Number of Fires Burning in Amazon Rainforest

Record Number of Fires Burning in Amazon Rainforest

There are a record number of wildfires burning in the Amazon rainforest, Brazil‘s space agency has said. Their smoke is visible from space and shrouded the city of São Paulo in darkness for about an hour Monday afternoon, CBS news reported. “It was as if the day had turned into night,” São Paulo resident Gianvitor […]

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    How Jair Bolsonaro Is Boosting Deforestation

    How Jair Bolsonaro Is Boosting Deforestation

    Right-wing Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro’s administration has pushed pause on monitoring industry in protected areas of the Amazon, the New York Times reports. An analysis of public records by the Times shows that enforcement actions, like fines and warnings against loggers, ranchers and miners illegally operating in the Amazon, have dropped by 20 percent since […]

    Did Brazil’s ‘Dirty List’ Prompt Starbucks and Nespresso to Stop Sourcing Coffee From Farm Caught With Slave-Like Conditions?

    Did Brazil’s ‘Dirty List’ Prompt Starbucks and Nespresso to Stop Sourcing Coffee From Farm Caught With Slave-Like Conditions?

    By Daniel Camargos Eight months after slave labor was discovered at the Cedro II farm in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, Starbucks and Nestlé-controlled brand Nespresso — both of whom had quality certified the farm — said they would stop sourcing coffee there. The decision by the two transnational companies came after the publication […]

    Brazil’s Bolsonaro Green-Lights 150+ Pesticides This Year

    Brazil’s Bolsonaro Green-Lights 150+ Pesticides This Year

    By Sue Branford and Thais Borges With the ruralist lobby now in control of key sectors of the federal government, Brazil is rapidly approving new pesticides for use, some of which critics say are either unnecessary or excessively toxic. During the first 100 days of the Jair Bolsonaro administration, the Agriculture Ministry authorized the registration […]

    Will American Museum of Natural History Dignify ‘Tropical Trump’?

    Will American Museum of Natural History Dignify ‘Tropical Trump’?

    The American Museum of Natural History says it is “deeply concerned” about a gala honoring Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro that is scheduled to take place at the museum next month. According to the museum, the Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce had booked the museum as its venue to give its Person of the Year Award before […]

    3 Massacres in 12 Days Suspected in Brazilian Amazon

    3 Massacres in 12 Days Suspected in Brazilian Amazon

    By Sue Branford and Thais Borges Violence in the Brazilian countryside is on the rise. In the last two weeks, Amazonia has seen an alarming increase in targeted killings, with three massacres and at least nine deaths. The Catholic Church’s Pastoral Land Commission (CPT) defines a massacre as a killing involving three or more people. […]

    Brazil Moves to Open Indigenous Lands to Mining

    Brazil Moves to Open Indigenous Lands to Mining

    By Sue Branford and Maurício Torres For many years, international and Brazilian mining companies have dreamed of getting access to the mineral wealth lying beneath indigenous lands. And finally, the government of Jair Bolsonaro seems determined to give them that opportunity. On March 4, while Brazilians were distracted by Carnival celebrations, the new Minister of […]