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Loading ...Update: Mapping Brazil’s Basins to Prepare Against Oil Spills
Tuesday, September 9th, 2008Over a year ago I had a post here about the efforts of Brazil’s Environment Ministry (MMA) to prepare comprehensive atlases of the Brazilian sedimentary basins where oil and gas exploration, drilling and related activities are permitted. [80% of Brazil’s oil and gas exploration/exploitation occurs offshore.] The atlas covering the very important Santos Basin was […]
CNPq to Invest R$8 Million in Alternative Fertilizer Research
Monday, September 1st, 2008Brazil’s National Council on Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) has announced that it will invest R$8 million to stimulate research into the development of alternative fertilizers. The program is an acknowledgment of the fact that much of current Brazilian agricultural production utilizes fertilizers from non-renewable sources, often imported, that can create both economic problems for […]
A New Way to Tackle C&D Waste
Tuesday, June 10th, 2008Brazilian researchers have developed a new cost-saving and energy-saving way to recycle construction and demolition (C&D) waste that they claim is so innovative that they are filing to patent the process. However, the essential idea behind it is so simple that many city planners and waste engineers will probably slap their foreheads and exclaim, “Why […]
CNPq to Invest R$22 million in Biofuel Research
Sunday, November 4th, 2007Brazil's National Council on Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) has announced that it will invest R$ 22 million to stimulate research that aids improvements in the production of ethanol and biodiesel in Brazil. The resources will be tapped from CNPq's existing Sectoral Funds for Petroleum and Natural Gas (CT-Petro), Agro-business (CT-Agro) and Biotechnology (CT-Biotechnology). Two […]
Alcohol Consumption in Brazil IV: Drinking-Related Problems; Policy Responses
Sunday, October 14th, 2007At end-2005, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) resolved to undertake a regional effort to combat alcohol consumption under the guidance of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). As they do, they’ll likely study the efforts of Brazil to take the lead on the issue. This past spring Brazil adopted a national policy and not […]
Alcohol Consumption in Brazil II: Binge Drinking
Thursday, October 11th, 2007Back at the end of 2005, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) resolved to undertake a regional effort to combat alcohol consumption under the guidance of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). As they do, they’ll likely study the efforts of Brazil to take the lead on the issue. This past spring Brazil adopted a […]
Alcohol Consumption in Brazil I: Overview of Adult Drinking
Thursday, October 11th, 2007In prior posts I mentioned Brazil’s decision to adopt a national policy to combat consumption of alcoholic beverages, and its initial spate of public service announcements on the topic. What I failed to mention at the time was that one reason to keep an eye on what Brazil does in this area is that it […]
Dia Sem Carro
Friday, September 21st, 2007Tomorrow, Saturday 22 September, is World Carfree Day. The annual event begun in France in 1998 and now worldwide, is intended as a day when everyone leaves their car at home and utilizes public transport, walks or rides a bicycle. The resulting quiet, lack of traffic congestion and cleaner air is intended to make people […]
The Basics II, Foundations: Is a Constitutional Provision on the Environment Necessary?
Thursday, June 28th, 2007I had in the backlog queue a “Basics” piece on the importance of setting a solid environmental governance foundation through adoption of properly crafted and targeted laws, but held off publishing it for Temas administrative reasons I will not go into here. In the meantime, however, the Dominican Republic (DR) has come forward with ideas […]
Consumer Protection in LAC III – Consumer Agencies in LAC
Wednesday, April 18th, 2007To make up for missing World Consumer Rights Day (March 15), I promised to give you a five-part overview of consumer protection in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). In Part I, I looked at how consumer agencies and consumer NGOs in the region celebrated the Day. In Part II-A I examined how intergovernmental bodies […]