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Saturday, October 3, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
AGRICULTURE-BRAZIL: Banana Growers Battle Fungus
Growing bananas is a war against fungus infestations, a multi-pronged battle in which farmers apply an array of agro-chemicals, scientists work to develop resistant banana varieties, and the authorities try to stop plant diseases from spreading throughout the country.BRAZIL: Professionals Raise Eco-Social Awareness
Engineers, architects and other professionals seem to have found new motivation to offer their skills for social and environmental projects, with leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva newly in office, backed by the Workers' Party (PT).The Banana Wars against Fungus
Researchers are trying to protect the banana from its numerous enemies, and one of the tools they could use is to develop genetically modified varieties that are more resistant to pests. In Brazil, the greatest threat is black sigatoka fungus.ENVIRONMENT-BRAZIL: Gov’t Confronts Transgenic Crop Dilemma
The Brazilian government is moving to stake a balanced and consistent position on genetically modified products in an effort to reconcile the divergent pressures from environmentalists, scientists and the business community.TRADE: Brazil Determined in Fight against U.S. Cotton Subsidies
Brazil is proving resolute in its war against farm subsidies wherever they occur, this time demanding that the World Trade Organisation (WTO) set up a dispute resolution panel for its complaint against U.S. cotton subsidies./ARTS WEEKLY/FILM-BRAZIL: God Stars in Satire of a Country’s Ills
God is Brazilian. He laughingly laments the mistakes made by the humans he created, he hates performing miracles because it requires "too much effort", and he is looking for a saint to stand in for him while he takes a vacation.TRADE-MERCOSUR: U.S. Tariff-Reducing Proposal a Disappointment
Officials, business leaders and market analysts of Mercosur (Southern Common Market) are frustrated by the opening offer of the United States for talks on tariff reductions in setting up the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA).POLITICS-LATAM: Tepid Opposition to U.S. Drive for War
Latin America is but a spectator in the war drama of a potential U.S.-led attack against Iraq - intensified after the report presented Friday by United Nations chief arms inspector, Hans Blix, before the UN Security Council - but most of the governments in the region are maintaining anti-war rhetoric.TRADE-BRAZIL: Sights Set on Roasted Coffee Market
Brazil is the world's leading producer and exporter of green coffee, and is now moving to take on the international market for roasted and ground coffee, where its presence is currently limited to just 0.6 percent.BRAZIL: Social Projects to Remain Untouched by Budget Cuts – Lula
The austerity efforts to be implemented by Brazil's new government, stricter than those the previous administration agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), will not affect social programmes, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva assured a Monday Cabinet meeting.TRADE: Brazil Takes Aim at EU on Sugar Subsidies
The efforts of the Asia, Caribbean and Pacific group (ACP) in Brasilia proved useless Friday, as the former European colonies failed to dissuade Brazil from following through on its complaint at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) against European sugar export subsidiesTRADE: Brazil Takes Aim at EU on Sugar Subsidies
The efforts of the Asia, Caribbean and Pacific group (ACP) in Brasilia proved useless Friday, as the former European colonies failed to dissuade Brazil from following through on its complaint at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) against European sugar export subsidies.BRAZIL: Lula Launches War on Hunger – both Causes and Effects
Brazil's new President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva launched his Zero Hunger programme in Brasilia Thursday, promising to combat the causes, and not just the effects, of the problem.ENVIRONMENT-BRAZIL: Trade Protectionism a Latent Danger
Brazil's new government will try to prevent environmental issues from being used as an excuse for trade protectionism in a globalised world that ideally should be a giant space for exchange amongst different cultures, says environment minister Marina Silva.COMMUNICATION: Global Media Watch to Monitor Ethics in the Press
Global Media Watch will promote the creation of national committees to monitor violations of journalistic ethics in different countries, the organisation announced Tuesday at the end of the third annual World Social Forum (WSF).WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: Porto Alegre and Davos Invert Roles
The World Economic Forum (WEF) will have to begin to define itself as a counterpoint to the World Social Forum (WSF), the reverse of what has been the case over the past three years, according to activists meeting in this southern Brazilian city./ARTS WEEKLY/FILM-BRAZIL: Between Piaget and Pinochet in Documentary Boom
A football coach fired for taking off his clothes on the field, a young, unabashed prostitute and an elderly woman who decides against suicide are some of the real-life characters in "Edificio Master" (The Master Building), a documentary that marks the height of a boom in this film genre.WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: Most Put Social Questions Before Profits
The globalisation process has brought about an increasing concentration of wealth, and social conditions should take priority over profits, according to a majority of people interviewed in 15 countries in a survey whose results were presented at the World Social Forum (WSF), which opened Thursday in Brazil.WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: Most Put Social Questions Before Profits
The globalisation process has brought about an increasing concentration of wealth, and social conditions should take priority over profits, according to a majority of people interviewed in 15 countries in a survey whose results were presented at the World Social Forum (WSF), which opened Thursday in Brazil.WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: India, not Brazil, to Host Next Year’s Meet
The international board of the World Social Forum (WSF) decided Wednesday that the giant annual meeting of social activists and left-leaning political leaders and academics will be held in India in 2004, before returning to Brazil the following year.WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: India, not Brazil, to Host Next Year’s Meet
The international board of the World Social Forum (WSF) decided Wednesday that the giant annual meeting of social activists and left-leaning political leaders and academics will be held in India in 2004, before returning to Brazil the following year.« Previous Page — Next Page »
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