Search Climate Insights Directory

This report by Friends of the Earth International analyzes the 2019 Amazon rainforest fires as a result of corporate power and the expansion of the agricultural frontier. It argues that the MercoSur-European Union Free Trade Agreement (FTA) will accelerate deforestation, violate the rights of Indigenous Peoples, and reinforce Brazil's neo-colonial dependence by prioritizing the profits of transnational corporations over environmental and human rights.

This report by Friends of the Earth International argues that the destruction of the Amazon, specifically the 2019 fires, is a result of corporate power and the expansion of the agricultural frontier. It contends that the Free Trade Agreement between Mercosur and the European Union (EU) will accelerate this process by increasing demand for raw materials, facilitating land appropriation, and strengthening a 'corporate impunity' architecture that protects transnational companies while violating the rights of indigenous and traditional peoples.

This research paper discusses the environmental cost of Brazil's agricultural expansion and proposes four coordinated strategies to increase production and social welfare while reducing deforestation.

This policy brief argues that Brazil's satellite-based monitoring (DETER) and law enforcement (IBAMA) system is a highly cost-effective tool that prevented an average of 27,000 km² of deforestation per year between 2007 and 2016. The document demonstrates that these measures do not hinder agricultural production and avoid nearly 1 billion tCO2 emissions annually. It warns that a proposed 50% budget cut for 2020 could increase deforestation by 45% and recommends strengthening federal financial and institutional support for these systems.

This policy brief argues that Brazil's satellite-based monitoring (DETER) and law enforcement (IBAMA) are highly effective and cost-efficient tools for fighting deforestation. Between 2007 and 2016, these systems avoided the loss of 27,000 km2 of forest per year and nearly 1 billion tCO2 of emissions annually. The authors emphasize that these measures do not harm agricultural production and warn that a proposed 50% budget cut for 2020 could increase deforestation by 45%.

This white paper examines the inverse relationship between pastureland size and cattle productivity in Brazil. It finds that higher land prices and better access to capital incentivize ranchers to intensify production or switch to crops, thereby reducing the need for forest clearing. The authors recommend policies that combat illegal deforestation, remove bottlenecks to agricultural modernization, and improve credit access to promote sustainable beef production.

This white paper by the Climate Policy Initiative analyzes the relationship between livestock productivity and pasture area in Brazil. It argues that increasing productivity is essential to grow meat production without further deforestation in the Amazon and Cerrado, identifying a negative correlation where smaller pasture proportions often relate to higher productivity.

This research paper evaluates the effectiveness of Brazil's DETER satellite-based monitoring system in reducing deforestation in the Amazon between 2006 and 2016. Using an instrumental variable approach based on cloud coverage, the authors find that targeted environmental law enforcement significantly curbed forest clearing without negatively impacting local agricultural production.

The Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) and PUC-Rio are implementing a project (July 2019 – December 2020) to improve the socio-environmental and economic risk assessment of infrastructure projects in the Amazon. By combining economic and regulatory analysis, the project seeks to integrate these variables during the feasibility study phase to reduce environmental and social impacts and improve government planning processes.

This briefing describes the 'Sustainable Infrastructure in the Amazon' project, an initiative by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI/PUC-Rio) supported by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. The project aims to integrate socio-environmental risk assessments into the decision-making and lifecycle of infrastructure projects in Brazil, specifically focusing on the Amazon region, to ensure economic growth does not compromise vital ecosystem services.

A statement by Friends of the Earth International condemning the 2019 Amazon wildfires, attributing them to the neoliberal policies of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and the expansion of agribusiness, mining, and logging.

Friends of the Earth International reports a record increase in Amazon forest fires in 2019, particularly in Brazil, where deforestation rose by 278% in July 2019. The organization attributes this disaster to the neoliberal policies of President Jair Bolsonaro, who cut environmental budgets by 95% and weakened surveillance to benefit agribusiness and mining. The document highlights the critical role of the 900,000 indigenous people in protecting the region's 3 million species and calls on international bodies, including the European Union, to stop complicity through trade agreements like MERCOSUR.

A statement by Friends of the Earth International condemning the 2019 Amazon wildfires, attributing them to the neoliberal policies of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and the expansion of corporate agribusiness, mining, and timber industries.

This executive summary evaluates progress five years after the 2014 New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF), concluding that the goals to halve tropical deforestation by 2020 and end it by 2030 are unlikely to be met. The report highlights an acceleration in the loss of primary forests, inadequate restoration progress, and a significant gap between 'grey' finance for agriculture and 'green' finance for forest conservation.

This executive summary evaluates the progress of the New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF) five years after its 2014 inception. It concludes that the 2020 goals of halving tropical deforestation and restoring 150 million hectares of degraded landscapes are likely unattainable, as tropical deforestation continues at an unsustainable rate and restoration efforts have largely occurred outside natural forests.

This report evaluates the progress of the New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF) five years after its inception. It finds that despite increased awareness and technological monitoring, global deforestation has accelerated, and most 2020 targets will be missed. The document highlights a critical gap in funding, where investments driving deforestation vastly outweigh those for conservation. It emphasizes that indigenous land rights and strong political will are essential prerequisites for success, while corporate progress is stalled by supply chain complexity. The report calls for a paradigm shift toward 'green finance' and nature-based solutions to align forest protection with global climate and sustainable development goals.

This briefing describes SEI-PCS, a modeling approach developed by the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) to provide fine-scale subnational data on the origins of traded commodities and their associated socio-environmental impacts. The tool is designed to overcome the limitations of traditional footprinting methods, which typically rely on country-level macroeconomic figures, by recreating supply chains to link consumption to specific production sites.

This executive summary by the Climate Policy Initiative outlines financial and policy reforms needed to align Brazil's agricultural production with environmental conservation. It proposes a transition from a public-sector-dominated rural credit system toward one that incentivizes Forest Code compliance, increases private bank participation, and utilizes risk management tools like insurance and derivatives.

This white paper by the Climate Policy Initiative argues that strengthening command and control mechanisms, specifically through technological innovation in monitoring and law enforcement, is essential to combating illegal deforestation in Brazil. It highlights the success of the DETER system in the Amazon and proposes expanding these capabilities to other biomes and smaller-scale deforestation.

This white paper by the Climate Policy Initiative argues that strengthening environmental command and control—specifically through technological monitoring and law enforcement—is essential for Brazil to combat illegal deforestation, protect its native vegetation, and maintain its international agribusiness competitiveness.