Persistent social inequality in Latin America is worsening as the climate crisis disproportionately hits poor communities with full force, experts concluded Wednesday at the 2nd Latin American Green Economy Forum, organized by the EFE news agency, in São Paulo, Brazil.
According to the international organizations, regional authorities, and environmental specialists who gathered over the past two days, climate change is already a reality in this region, as shown by the droughts and fires currently raging in Brazil, Paraguay, and Bolivia, among others.
According to Jaime Verruck, Environment Secretary of the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Pantanal, the largest wetland on the planet, is suffering its worst water shortage in 70 years.
Meanwhile, São Paulo, Brazil’s most industrialized state, recorded 2,522 fires in September alone, the highest number since 1998.
A problem of priorities
The most vulnerable populations are the first to feel the effects of these increasingly violent and frequent disasters.
“Indigenous peoples in Brazil are seven times more vulnerable to climate change,” warned Claudio Providas, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) representative in Brazil.
Providas denounced the record global military spending, which reached 2.4 trillion dollars last year, an amount infinitely less than what is invested in development, prompting him to call to “check where our priorities are.”
Favelas mobilize
Brazil’s favelas, home to some 20 million people, have mobilized to implement initiatives to mitigate the effects of climate change.
One such project is “Agrofavela-Refazenda,” a 900 square meter vegetable garden in the middle of the Paraisópolis favela in São Paulo, where local women, many victims of male violence, are trained as “urban farmers.”
This sustainably produced food is used for another project, “Mãos de Maria,” which provides for food-insecure families, according to Gilson Rodrigues, president of G10 Favelas, an NGO that brings together leaders from the country’s largest favelas.
Recycling, an untapped industry
Collecting and managing waste also represents a sustainable economic resource not fully exploited in Latin America.
In Brazil, most waste pickers work informally, yet they are responsible for 90% of all recycled waste in the country. On average, they are paid $100 for each ton of material they collect.
“There is a lack of incentives, regulations, and public policies to include these informal recyclers,” said Nanci Darcolléte, executive director of Pimp My Carroça, an NGO that promotes the work of recyclable material collectors.
Carlos Henrique Rossin, ESG director of the Brazilian Association of Waste and Environment, which brings together companies in the sector, advocated encouraging recycling by charging citizens for waste and exempting the activity from taxes.
The forum was sponsored by ApexBrasil, Brazil’s export and investment promotion agency, and Norte Energia, operator of Belo Monte, the world’s fourth largest hydroelectric plant, and supported by Vivo and the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Brazil. (EFE)
