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Wednesday, September 9, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
ENVIRONMENT-BRAZIL: Activists Challenge Garbage Burning
The "Usina Verde" project seeks to generate energy in Brazil while eliminating urban waste and helping to curb global warming. But its good intentions have not won over environmental groups because the plan involves burning the garbage.BRAZIL: Organised Crime Terrorises São Paulo
Nearly four days of violence in the Brazilian state of São Paulo have left 81 dead, including 39 police, 56 buses destroyed by fire, and eight banks damaged, while inmates rioted in 73 prisons. The wave of violence is the biggest show of power by organised crime in Brazil.BRAZIL: Soy Farmers Demand Greater Support in Crisis
Protests by large soybean farmers and ranchers in Brazil, which will culminate Tuesday in demonstrations around the country and a march on the capital, reflect a crisis that was unimaginable just three years ago, when export agriculture was experiencing a boom that had foreign competitors on edge.BRAZIL: Nationalisation in Bolivia Ignites ‘Sub-Imperialist’ Public Opinion
Bolivia's nationalisation of its energy resources has triggered a public outcry in Brazil, demanding that the government take a stronger stance to "defend national interests" - undeterred by the fact that these particular interests happen to be located in other countries.Environmentalists Challenge Garbage Burning
The "Usina Verde" project aims to help curb climate change through a different approach to waste management, but it could be a source of other contaminants.ENVIRONMENT-BRAZIL: “Ignorance Is Hurting the Amazon”
Ignorance about the problems afflicting the Brazilian Amazon leads to policies based on erroneous views, says Tarcisio Feitosa da Silva, a winner of the 2006 Goldman Environmental Prize for his defence of a series of Amazon reserves that comprise the world's largest tropical ecological corridor.LATAM-EU: Divided Mercosur Heads to Summit
A divided Mercosur trade bloc is taking part in the EU-Latin America/Caribbean summit in Vienna, but it is not only circumstantial problems that are standing in the way of integration between the two regions, according to Brazilian analysts.
Ignorance Is Hurting the Amazon”
Brazilian activist Tarcisio Feitosa da Silva, a winner of the Goldman Environmental Prize -- known widely as the "Green Nobel" -- spoke with Tierramérica about his efforts to protect the Amazon.BRAZIL: Activists ‘Responsibly Optimistic’ on Child Labour Reduction
Activists in Brazil are somewhat sceptical with regard to the fact that Brazil was held up as an example of what can be done to eradicate child labour.LABOUR-BRAZIL: Slow Improvement for Domestic Workers
Most of them are women of African descent. They earn barely 35 percent of the average wage, and only one-third have a proper contract. But according to the latest statistics, domestic workers in Brazil today are slightly better off than they were a few years ago.ENERGY-BOLIVIA: Brazil Willing to Negotiate, After Nationalisation
The Brazilian government recognised Bolivia's "sovereign right" to nationalise its energy resources, and announced that the leaders of both countries would meet with the presidents of Argentina and Venezuela Thursday to discuss the Bolivian government's decision to reassert state control over the country's gas fields.SOUTH AMERICA: Gas-Fueled Integration Ignores Crises
Presidents Néstor Kirchner of Argentina, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil and Hugo Chávez of Venezuela concluded Wednesday in Brazil that a projected gas pipeline that would cross South America from north to south is viable, and that the plan should be ready to present to the other governments in the region in September.BRAZIL: Proliferation of Motorcycles and Health Risks
The continued expansion of Brazil's motorcycle industry over the past 13 years has polluted the air of the major cities and increased the number of traffic accidents, which kill 30,000 Brazilians a year and send more than 100,000 to hospitals.DEVELOPMENT: Innovative Financing Takes Concrete Shape
Chile and France will begin in July to charge a special tax in airports which will go towards the purchase of medicines for poor countries afflicted by HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.DEVELOPMENT: Innovative Financing Takes Concrete Shape
Chile and France will begin in July to charge a special tax in airports which will go towards the purchase of medicines for poor countries afflicted by HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.BRAZIL: Activists for Reelection of Lula, but With Reduced Hopes
The reelection of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is still the best option in the view of Brazil's social movements. But activists would have a "qualitatively different" relationship with a second Lula administration, "because they have lost the high expectations and hopes" for enormous changes that catapulted the left to victory in the late 2002 elections.
Proliferation of Motorcycles and Health Risks
In 2005, Brazil manufactured 1.2 million motorcycles. Many consumers prefer them because they are lightweight and fast, but the downside is that they pollute the air and cause thousands of injuries and deaths each year.BRAZIL: Social Forum Points to Different Ways of Educating
Making full use of neighbourhood resources to educate youngsters and developing rural education that respects local values and knowledge are several new ways of educating that were demonstrated at various sessions of the Brazilian Social Forum on Friday, the first day of the three-day gathering.BRAZIL: Indigenous Peoples’ Conference at Odds with Government
The first National Conference of Indigenous Peoples in Brazil made little progress on defining specific policies and was sharply criticised by some leaders, but it opened up new possibilities for dialogue between the government and indigenous peoples.BIODIVERSITY: Islands – Paradise Invaded
Many countries, including Brazil, are only just waking up to the threat that invading species can pose to islands, generally seen as natural paradises and tourist attractions.ENERGY-LATIN AMERICA: The Time for Biofuel Is Now
Energy could be a factor in favour of competitiveness and development in Latin America, in a world in which the coming oil shortage has already caused a surge in energy prices, and biofuels are emerging as an economically viable alternative.« Previous Page — Next Page »
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