Sonia Guajajara

Felled trees on Karipuna territory in the Amazonian state of Rondônia.

Lula empowers Brazil’s Indigenous peoples with their own ministry. But environmental protection remains a key concern.

Environment

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has made good on a series of campaign promises to defend the Amazon and empower Indigenous peoples. He already signed an executive order to relaunch a billion-dollar Amazon fund, where foreign governments can contribute to forest protection, among six other orders.

A muddy river runs through a green landscape. On one side are trees and a dense forest; the other is bare.

‘Our wealth is the forest’: Indigenous tribes are the last best hope for the Amazon