As one who has been and remains deeply involved in Brazil’s environmental and developmental challenge, and conscious of its global implications, I am less than happy with the way things have developed. Fulfilment of the commitments of Rio ‘92, especially those in Agenda 21, has been impaired by issues involving governance which were not adequately addressed. The international agreements of 1992 established relevant goals and recognized the importance of public participation and democracy. But little attention has been paid to a crucial issue: countries have different institutional designs. In countries with presidential regimes such as Brazil, international agreements are signed by the executive and are subject to ratification by parliament which can raise difficulties depending on political interests prevailing at different times. This was the case of Brazil with regard to the ratification of the Biodiversity Convention. In Brazil, as in many other countries, biodiversity, climate change and forests are recognized as themes of great importance, but are not adequately contemplated in the national agenda. My personal experience as a congressman elected on an environmentalist platform demonstrates how difficult it is to insert these themes into the parliament’s agenda. A great number of projects that I submitted did not receive the deserved attention. A politician’s work is quite a delicate task; and environmental politics in Brazil especially so. Research Paper Help by educated paper writers online! We are working with the most talented writers! The expansion of the economic frontier in the Amazon region was promoted by the military government in order to guarantee national sovereignty, disregarding the environmental costs involved. During the Rio ‘92 conference, Brazilian congressmen participating in the meeting were urged to testify on the “internationalization of the Amazon” before a legislative committee. Given such an opportunity, as a congressman elected by São Paulo, a cosmopolitan and industrialized state, but concerned with the problems of the Amazon region, I had to defend myself against accusations of serving the national interests of other countries.

The introduction of global themes in local agendas is not easy. This is due mainly to the complexity of issues such as lifestyle and consumption patterns in modern society that favour individual interests and satisfaction of immediate demands while disregarding collective interests and future needs. It is quite a political feat to introduce the idea of sustainability into citizens’ everyday lives-for example to convince anyone to renounce any comfort such as a car for the sake of the global climate equilibrium.

Now that the Kyoto conference has thrown down the gauntlet to the North, discussions over drastic change will be underway behind the scenes—involving restrictions on motor vehicle production, reduction of emissions generated by industrial activities, revision of energy generation models and production processes, as well as improvement of mechanisms for the conservation of forests. The global economy will be greatly affected by any of these measures, which will imply dramatic behavioural change. That is why the Kyoto conference was so critical.