Climate Action 2014-2015

MITIGATION AND ADAPTATION
BRAZIL’S NATIONAL
POLICY FOR
LOW CARBON
SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT
By Izabella Teixeira, Minister of the Environment, Brazil
Following the Copenhagen climate change conference, Brazil announced its Nationally-
Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) to reduce its projected greenhouse gas emissions
by 2020. The country’s voluntary emission reduction target, between 36 and 39 per cent,
formed the basis of Brazil’s national policy on climate change, approved at the end of 2009,
to ensure that national economic and social development is compatible with the Brazilian
contribution to protecting the global climate system.
Since 2010, Brazil has implemented its
five NAMAs to reduce deforestation;
to promote a low carbon emission
agriculture; to deploy an energy plan to
increase the use of hydropower, biofuels,
renewables, and energy efficiency; and to
stimulate more efficient production and
use of charcoal for the iron/steel industries.
Additionally, in 2013 the Brazilian
government approved four new sector
plans for industry (aluminium, cement,
paper & pulp, chemistry, glass, and iron/
steel sectors), mining, transport, and health
(to increase preparedness and decrease
vulnerability of the public health system).
These plans go beyond merely reducing
emissions; they also serve as the basis to
increase the efficiency and competitiveness
of important economic sectors in Brazil.
COORDINATED DECISION-
MAKING
The climate change policy has promoted
a better coordination of efforts among
governmental institutions: the Ministry
of the Environment coordinates the
steering committee for national policy,
which responds to the inter-ministerial
committee for climate change, under
the coordination of the Chief of Staff
of the Presidency, therefore achieving
the highest levels of decision-making on
climate change policy in Brazil.
The policy also benefits from qualified
contributions of the Brazilian Forum
on Climate Change, chaired by the
President of Brazil, with a broad
participation of governmental and nongovernmental
representatives, created to
raise awareness and mobilise Brazilian
society to discuss and take positions
on climate change. The Forum also
assists the Brazilian Government in the
incorporation of climate change issues at
various stages of public policy.
There is also a strong academic
contribution to the policy, particularly
from the Brazilian Panel on Climate
Change, a national scientific body that
aims to gather, synthesise and evaluate
scientific information on the relevant
aspects of climate change in Brazil after
the publication of National Assessment
Reports, and form a scientific climate
network that gathers over 300 national
experts running publicly funded research
in 15 different thematic areas.
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