Brazil’s new president is determined to reverse Bolsonaro’s scorched-earth approach to the environment
This week, as Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was preparing to be sworn in for an unprecedented third term, a key concern was whether the weather would allow him to wave to assembled supporters in Brasília from an open-top convertible, as is customary. It certainly marked a departure from the more serious concerns that had haunted the transfer of power between him and his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, in previous weeks.
Thousands of Bolsonaro followers, after all, had refused to accept the outcome of last year’s elections. Many camped outside military barracks urging the armed forces to intervene, committing serious acts of vandalism in the nation’s capital. Thankfully, their pleas came to nothing – Bolsonaro unceremoniously left for Florida on the last day of the year – and Lula is officially back.
