Adventures of a Gringa

Stuff Cariocas Say

On the lighter side for today: in case you missed this, I highly recommend it. 

 

Not only is it spot on culture-wise, but it's also reflective of a changing Rio: the optimism, the skyrocketing real estate prices, and of course, wondering what will happen during the World Cup.

Looking Beyond Rio+20

As Rio+20 wrapped up on Friday, most people were focused on the underwhelming results of the summit. But the event provided an excellent opportunity to determine what the city has accomplished and what it still needs to get done before upcoming mega-events over the next few years.

• Traffic: Undoubtedly, the biggest complaint at Rio+20 was the incredible amount of traffic. Despite attempts by the city to create dedicated lanes, provide buses for conference participants, and declare a three-day holiday for schools and city government workers, there were still huge traffic jams. Another cause of traffic were protests throughout the city during the conference, causing bottlenecks. One columnist jokingly called the conference Rio2h20, based on the amount of time it took to commute to Riocentro; others called it Rio mais trânsito (Rio plus traffic). Participants faced several hours of traffic a day getting to and from the main event, not to mention Cariocas going about their daily commutes. While protests may be a lesser issue at upcoming mega-events, the city's transportation system promise to be one of the most critical areas. The rapid bus transit system could be helpful if the full system is constructed, it doesn't solve the fundamental problem that Rio has more vehicles than its roads can handle on a daily basis, a problem that is growing as more and more members of the new middle class buy cars. (In fact, some argue that the BRT lanes could actually worsen traffic.) Though an extended metro system could potentially provide much-needed relief for clogged roadways and frustrated commuters, bus companies are a powerful lobby. Fewer buses in Rio's West Zone--one of the city's most congested areas--seem unlikely. The city's expanding infrastructure is one of the key things to watch through 2016.

• Security: As with other mega-events, Rio's police and military set up a massive operation citywide. While a European tourist was stabbed a day before the conference began, the conference was largely free of criminal incidents. (There was a strange incident with an indigenous man with a bow and arrow during a protest near BNDES, captured in this photo, though no one was injured.)  On June 19, several drug traffickers reportedly prohibited the sale of crack in several favelas, perhaps in an effort to prevent military occupation. It may have been a coincidence that the announcement came during the days of the conference, though perhaps not, given the number of military and police deployed throughout the city. Despite the brief period of relative peace, the day after the event ended, several criminals stole and flipped a car and had a shootout with police in Leblon, one of Rio's wealthiest neighborhoods.

• Favelas: While the city and state government invested in constructing walls around several favelas over the past few years--perhaps most notoriously near favelas visible from the highway connecting the city to the airport--politicians showed off the favelas during Rio+20. Some conference participants visited favelas throughout the city, and the mayor showed off several programs at favelas as well. In one of the more maddening visits, Rio's mayor accompanied New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg for a half hour to a favela in Zona Sul. In preparation for Bloomberg's short visit, the city paved a street, removed graffiti, and knocked down a wall--all in less than 24 hours. The reason for knocking down the wall? So Bloomberg would have an ocean view during the visit. In addition, residents of Vila Autódromo held a protest during the conference to bring attention to the community, slated for removal to make way for Olympics infrastructure projects.

• Accommodations: While an estimated 50,000 participants were anticipated at Rio+20, the city actually received double that amount--110,000 tourists between June 13 and 22. Around 45,000 participated in the official conference, while 300,000 participated in the People's Summit, a side event. Hotel capacity was at 95 percent, forcing some attendees to sleep at the Sambodrome and camp out. Interestingly, only 54 percent of tourists stayed in hotels, while the rest found alternative accomodations. Creating more space for tourists is another key area before upcoming mega-events.

• Prices & Service: Rio+20 participants complained about high prices, including food at official events and hotel prices (which were lowered due to a government negotation). The government estimates tourists spent R$274 million during the conference, or $132.5 million. As Julia Michaels pointed out, there were also complaints of poor service and disorganization. Similarly, Globo journalist Gilberto Scofield encountered conference volunteers who had no clue what was going on. Though it will take some work, better organization and better trained volunteers seem more likely than reasonable prices at future mega-events.

Photo: FIESP/Helcio Nagamine

Five Years

I started this blog five years ago today as I prepared to move to Brazil, with the intent to write on a personal level to keep friends and family in the loop about my experiences in Rio. But over time, the blog morphed into something quite different. Since then, I went from being a frustrated English teacher to a full-blown writer, from a girlfriend to a wife, from Rio back to New York.

To mark a new chapter, I've done a couple of things. First, I started a Tumblr to share the lighter side of writing about Brazil, which I'm trying to update daily. I'm also still going strong on Twitter and Facebook, where you can see more of my work and my picks of interesting Brazil news. I did some reorganizing of categories so it should be easier to find content in the archives. I'm hoping to refine the archives even more to make them easier to navigate. And as always, I'm open to suggestions for new posts, guest posts, and interviews.

I also just want to thank everyone who reads the blog, both new and long-time readers. It's through the blog that I've met some of the most amazing people who are now friends, that I've been able to interview some incredible Brazilians and Brazilophile gringos, and that I've had the opportunity to forge a new path for myself. Thank you all so much, and I hope you'll stick around for more exciting things to come.

Rio+20 Begins

Rio+20 began yesterday, and as usual, everything is coming together at the last minute. With 50,000 visitors and around 100 heads of state expected, the city's preparations are being finalized. It's a good sign, since the massive event is going to serve as a practice run for upcoming mega-events like the Confederations Cup, the World Cup, and the Olympics.

The city government is taking preventative measures to try to reduce the city's notorious traffic, which is especially heavy in Barra, where the main part of the conference is taking place. The mayor declared a school holiday for all levels, from pre-K to universities, as well as a partial public worker holiday, and special traffic measures are being put into place. A lane on the Linha Vermelha highway will have an exclusive lane for heads of state, and Avenida Niemeyer--a narrow, seaside road which connects Barra to the South Zone--will operate in a single direction during peak hours from the 20th to 22nd. There will be special buses running to transport visitors to and from the conference, including "green" buses.

Earlier this month, the city inaugurated its first bus rapid transit system, which if all goes as planned, will connect the city from end to end, from the airport to Barra. There's only one section operating so far, but it's one of the sections within the West Zone, where Rio+20 is taking place. There are some concerns that adding more buses in Barra won't solve its traffic problem in the long run, but the fact that part of it is up and running is a good sign for the city's expanding infrastructure.

Security, as for all big events, is traditionally led by the military. Around 20,000 troops and police are operating in the city, and a special operations center along with 400 security cameras will monitor the city in real time.

Possibly because of the still-high prices, there are hotel rooms to spare--around 15 percent of all rooms are unoccupied this week, and 5 percent for next week. Some creative attendees are actually camping out on one of Rio's college campuses and in one of the city's parks, and there are even accomodations available at the Sambodrome and public education centers.

Attending the conference isn't cheap, but then, neither is traveling to Rio. After the hotel price imbroligio, the latest issue is that food at Riocentro (the conference center) is being sold at "international prices" with R$5 soda cans and a R$12 slice of pizza. Visitors from all over the world are evidently complaining about the high prices, though there are simpler lunch options at more reasonable prices.

Technology is also being tested at Rio+20. Along with wireless internet for the thousands of conference participants, the event is the first in Brazil that will have a 4G connection, which will be used as an experiment to test the connection. Brazil hopes to expand 4G to regular internet users by 2013 in time for the Confederations Cup, and the government just raised $1.4 billion this week in its 4G auction. That said, journalists were complaining about technology issues, including not being able to send photos or video, not being allowed use printers because it "isn't sustainable," even though delegates are allowed to print, and the absence of adapters available for foreign journalists.

The real test will begin on the 20th, when the heads of state arrive. But like with Carnival every year, things are coming together.

Photo: FIESP

Brazilians and the Environment

With Rio+20 rapidly approaching, all eyes are on Brazil and its environment. But what do Brazilians actually think about environmental issues?

One of the most controversial environmental issues, the Forest Code, was passed by the president and seems to be plowing ahead. Dilma made a number of modifications and vetos, and after she sent the bill back to Congress, it received over 600 amendments. (Given how contentious the bill became, Dilma herself didn't actually announce the changes she made; she sent her ministers to do it.) With Dilma's changes, the bill is still fairly ambiguous and left both environmentalists and agribusiness interests unhappy. One of the biggest points of contention dealt with amnesty for deforesters; while she vetoed amnesty for large deforesters, amnesty for small-scale deforesters remained in the bill. Things took another strange turn today when some of the ruralistas tried to get the Supreme Court to block Dilma's changes to the law. Now, Congress says it won't have a final vote on the final changes until July. But some question whether the changes to the law will matter in the long run, given that the parts of the country most affected by deforestation are areas with weak rule of law where many already ignore the rules.

Given that the Forest Code has gained a lot of negative attention both in Brazil and beyond, the government has made some last-ditch efforts to produce some environmentally friendly news. This week, the government announced that according to the state-run agency INPE, the Amazon has seen the lowest deforestation rates since 1988 and that over 81 percent of the original forest has been preserved. The time period in question is between August 2010 and July 2011, but deforestation also reportedly fell between August 2011 and May 2012. The crux of the announcement--about the 2010-2011 numbers--were actually just a rehash of an announcement already made last year. But Dilma also took the opportunity to announce the creation of two new nature reserves (in Paraná and Rio Grande do Norte) and seven new indigenous reserves in the Amazon.

                Source: INPE

But as the hosts of one of the most important global environmental events, what do Brazilians think about the environment, the Amazon, and deforestation?

• Knowledge about the environment is on the rise in Brazil. Over the past 20 years, consciousness about deforestation, environmental protection, and other issues have steadily grown, as more and more Brazilians believe a healthy environment is good for the country. According to a survey released today, though only 22 percent of Brazilians know what Rio+20 is, more Brazilians are concerned about the environment. The study showed that Brazilians listed the environment as the number 6 concern for the country; in a similar study in 1992, the environment didn't even appear on the list. Interestingly, of those who said they were "very proud" of the country, most listed the environment as the number one reason for feeling proud of the country, above socioeconomic development and the Brazilian people. Also, 65 percent said it is important to protect the environment for "survival." It's also interesting to note that in 1992, 47 percent did not know or didn't give an opinion on Brazil's main environmental problems; in 2012, it decreased to 10 percent.

        Source: Ministry of the Environment

• More Brazilians are taking action about the environment. Though only an estimated 2 percent of household trash is recycled in Brazil, the environment survey released today indicated that 48 percent of Brazilians separate their trash for recycling. One in five Brazilians have taken environmental action, including separating the trash, planting trees, and group clean-ups. Around 76 percent of those who live in cities trying to reduce plastic bag use said they have committed themselves to the campaign. Brazilians also mobilized against the Forest Code. A petition signed by nearly 2 million people--of which 1.5 million were Brazilian--was delivered to Dilma asking her to veto the entire bill. A number of high-profile celebrities ranging from Gisele to Rodrigo Santoro to Fernando Meirelles mobilized support among Brazilians to protest the law both on the streets and on the web.

 

• The Amazon is ours, Brazilians sometimes say when asked about who is responsible for one of the world's largest rainforests. But for many Brazilians who live in the country's largest cities, the Amazon is something of a faraway concept, even though the Amazon rainforest accounts for between 40 and 50 percent of Brazil's total area. Still, the rallying cry of maintaining sovereignty over the Amazon--a Amazônia é nossa--may not take into complete account the fact that the Amazon basin is spread over nine countries, and around 40 percent of the total area is located in Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. There's also a lot of sensitivity around criticism and pressure from abroad to protect the Amazon, and some believe that foreigners should have no say in Amazonian protection efforts.

 

• Brazilians are very protective of the Amazon, and beyond sensitivity to outside influence, some are even suspicious of foreign intervention there. There's a long-running urban myth that foreigners are trying to take over the Amazon, a conspiracy theory that has persisted to this day. While a number of experts have tried to debunk this myth, there is evidence that foreigners support stronger restrictions on Amazon deforestation. A January 2012 survey of foreigners from 18 countries asked about their perceptions of Brazil showed that 40 percent believe the Amazon should be administered according to international law rather than Brazilian law. Plus, 65 percent said they'd be willing to donate money to help preserve the Amazon. But since Brazilians are wary of foreigners' involvement with the Amazon, would those unaware of the event--around 80 percent of the population--support Rio+20 if they knew what it was? In the end, it may not matter, since setting legally binding targets seems very unlikely. The good news is that more and more Brazilians are becoming more invested in the environment, which will hopefully mean that more people willl seek to hold leaders accountable for environmental protection and sustainability.