Stanton Geyer

Fishing communities in Brazil are demanding legal recognition of 'marétorios' as Marine Spatial Planning and offshore wind expansion threaten traditional territories and livelihoods in the Amazônia Azul.

The Amazon produces vast quantities of food, yet millions still face hunger. This article examines the links between environmental justice, inequality, food sovereignty, and COP30 in Brazil, arguing that the issue is not production, but the system that governs distribution.

As Belém prepared for COP30, urban redevelopment projects deepened long-standing inequalities between the city centre and the baixadas, where rivers continue to disappear beneath concrete channels. Written before COP30 all the issues remain valid today for Belém and other cities hosting major international events.

COP30 in Belém raised hopes that the Amazon would finally move to the centre of global climate action. While governments agreed to expand adaptation finance and launch new forest-protection initiatives, binding commitments on deforestation, fossil fuels and Indigenous land rights remained absent. As Brazil hosted the climate summit in the heart of the rainforest, the gap between diplomatic ambition and enforceable protection became stark.