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00:00 world leaders met in Brazil this Wednesday for a summit aimed at saving the globe's tropical
00:04 rainforests. This was the second day of the meeting hosted by President Lula da Silva.
00:10 On Tuesday, eight South American countries met and today the summit expanded to include nations from
00:15 Africa and Southeast Asia. As a result, there was an agreement to preserve the Amazon rainforest to
00:20 avoid what scientists have described as the point of no return, but it fell short of a shared goal
00:26 on deforestation and many participants expressed disappointment on that point.
00:31 I believe that it is not even enough to reach zero deforestation anymore.
00:39 The solution is to abandon coal, oil and gas.
00:42 And for more on this story, I'm joined by Mariana Bambo-Perozzi, a senior advisor for
00:48 the environmental group Mighty Earth. Thanks so much for being with us here on France 24.
00:52 First of all, what is your general reaction to what has come out of this summit?
00:56 The summit is a very positive first step in this fight against deforestation. We welcome
01:06 the progress that was made related to indigenous people's rights. They were recognized by this
01:13 declaration, the Amazon declaration. And there were some very important missing points that we
01:22 were very, very disappointed about that, actually. Yeah, I know there's been a lot of criticism that
01:27 there was a lack of concrete steps here, but is it at least a sign of progress that these nations
01:33 have agreed to prevent the Amazon from reaching that point of no return when it comes to
01:38 deforestation? And just so we understand this clearly, what exactly is that tipping point?
01:43 Yes, the tipping point is a point where Amazon would
01:49 stop absorbing and they would start releasing more carbon than the sequestrating it. So the
01:58 problem is that this tipping point, it's calculated to be at 20% of Amazon's loss. Brazil itself has
02:09 already lost 21%. And the whole Amazon, considering the eight countries, they are at 17%. So it's
02:18 really serious and it could contribute a lot to increasing temperatures in the earth and
02:27 worsening the climate change. If governments aren't doing a sufficient job here, what role
02:34 can the private sector play in saving the world's rainforests? Governments could do a more ambitious
02:44 job. Let's start by that. They are doing their roles. It's an important summit for, mainly after
02:52 Bolsonaro has gone out of Brazilian government. It's very important, but it's not enough. It's
02:59 lack of ambitions. And the private sector, they are, we can say they are the main driver of
03:06 deforestation in Brazil and in the other Latin American countries. We could talk specifically
03:14 about the meat industry, which was a non-subject, a non-issue in this summit. And it's a very,
03:23 very concerning aspect of all of this. We could... I'm sorry for interrupting you there.
03:32 Finish your thought, please. It's just that the private sector could do a lot in these terms.
03:40 They could stop increasing deforestation by stop harvesting soybeans and planting soybeans in the
03:48 Amazon. They could stop feeding animals there. They could stop ranching cattle there. And this
03:53 would be a beginning, a very important beginning. They are the main drivers of deforestation and
03:58 they could not go like this. I know that your group, Mighty Earth, has tried to bring attention
04:04 to what's happening in the Cerrado savanna in central Brazil. Just for the benefit of our
04:09 viewers, what is going on there and why should we be concerned? Yes, this is a very important
04:16 subject. Actually, this year, deforestation in Amazon has already decreased. It's a positive
04:24 aspect, but it's not all. Cerrado is a biome that is neighbor to Amazon and we can consider it as
04:30 up-down forest. It holds carbon in its racines. I don't remember the name of this now. But,
04:41 yes, instead of the leaves. And this is very important for equilibrating the temperatures,
04:48 for producing water. Cerrado holds about 5% of the world's biodiversity in the savannas.
04:55 And the environmental and the social economic importance of this is, we have absolutely no
05:03 doubt about it. The problem is that all of the concentration of the attention goes to the Amazon
05:08 and Cerrado is left behind. The deforestation is increasing very, very fast there.
05:18 We have calculated numbers and they are terrible. Okay, well, sorry to end there on a sour note,
05:26 but we'll have to leave it there. Mariana Bambo-Perosi, Senior Advisor for the environmental
05:30 group Mighty Earth. Thanks so much for joining us here on France 24. Thank you very much.