The Econmist - USA (2021-11-06)

30 TheAmericas TheEconomistNovember6th 2021

Wood from the trees

Greenhouse-gas emissions by sector as % of total

2018

Source:CAIT,WorldResourcesInstitute *Forestry and agriculture

China

UnitedStates

India

Indonesia

Brazil

1007550250

Other

Land-use change* Energy

$10bn  per  year”  to  reduce  deforestation

and  that  its  “long­term  strategy...will  take

into  account  financial  transfers  to  be  re­

ceived”.  The  Climate  Observatory  called

this “blackmail”.

Now,  however,  negotiators  claim  that

Brazil’s commitments are “unconditional”.

This softer stance may have to do with the

absence of the strongest proponent of the

“pay­up” strategy, the former environment

minister  Ricardo  Salles,  who  resigned  in

June.  Mr  Cleaver  has  also  signalled  that

Brazil might be willing to compromise on

two thorny debates surrounding Article 6. 

The  first  has  to  do  with  carbon  credits

generated according to the rules of the Kyo­

to  summit  in  1997.  Brazil  has  billions  of

dollars­worth of these credits and believes

they should be incorporated into a new in­

ternational carbon market which Article 6

provides  for.  Rich  countries  are  wary,  as

there is debate about whether the verifica­

tion  the  Kyoto  credits  underwent  reaches

the  standards  of  the  Paris  accord.  Some

did, but others are problematic (including

forest credits; see International section). 

And under the Kyoto protocol only rich

countries were required to cut their emis­

sions,  whereas  poorer  countries  did  not

have  to  keep  track.  If  credits  Brazil  sold

abroad in the past are accepted in the new

system,  it  will  have  to  remove  these  cuts

from  its  mitigation  results  in  order  to

avoid double­counting. It has resisted this.

The  second  debate  is  about  what  hap­

pens when new carbon credits are sold by

businesses in one country to businesses or

governments  in  another.  Brazil  (or  any

country from which credits are sold) needs

to  make  “corresponding  adjustments”  to

its own mitigation tally in order to exclude

these  offsets.  For  the  first  time,  Brazil  has

said  that  it  would  accept  such  adjust­

ments—perhaps,  some  experts  are  specu­

lating,  in  exchange  for  the  acceptance  of

some  Kyoto  credits,  maybe  with  certain

criteria or during a transition period.

The  Paris  agreement  contains  the  ele­

gant if Utopian principle of “common but

differentiated  responsibilities”,  the  idea

being that countries that historically emit­

ted  the  most  must  do  more  to  cut  emis­

sions.  But  Brazil’s  chance  to  benefit  from

this  principle  is  hindered  by  its  failure  to

accept much responsibility at all. The gov­

ernment  claims  that  because  renewable

sources (including hydroelectric dams) ac­

count  for  45%  of  total  energy  use,  four

times  the  oecd average,  Brazil  “already

qualifies as a low­carbon economy”. This is

misleading. In contrast to other countries,

industry  and  energy  are  responsible  for

only around half of Brazil’s emissions; the

other half comes from deforestation.

If  deforestation  and  farming  are  taken

into account, its emissions look worse (see

chart). It is the sixth­biggest emitter glob­

ally.  In  some  ways,  it  should  be  easier  for

Brazil  to  cut  emissions  than  it  is  for  rich

countries  that  have  already  started  to  use

clean, cost­savingtechnology,saysCaroli­

na Genin oftheWorldResourcesInstitute,

a  think­tank. For example, while wind

power  is  nowcapableofprovidingnearly

20% of Brazil’selectricity,thecountryhas

yet  to  exploititshugesolarpotential.But

whereas mostcountriesprimarilyneedto

change howtheygenerateanduseenergy,

Brazil needstochangehowit usesland.

Mr LeitepledgedthatBrazilwillendil­

legal  deforestationby2028.Itisa worthy

goal  that  seems,atpresent,utterlyunat­

tainable. Thenewprogrammesintendedto

help are rehashesofthingsthatalreadyex­

isted;  the  Inter­ministerialCommitteeon

Climate  Change now has “and Green

Growth” attheend.Morepromisingly,Bra­

zil  plans  tohire 700 environmentalfield

agents to replacethescoreswhoquitdur­

ing  Mr  Salles’stenure.Butlikethe3,000

soldiers  senttoputoutfiresin 2020 and

2021,  theywillstruggletostopslash­and­

burn farmingwhenthegovernmentallbut

grants slashersandburnersimpunity.

Meanwhile, Brazil’s argument about

needing cashfromtherichworldisdisin­

genuous,  saysIzabellaTeixeira,aformer

environmentminister.GermanyandNor­

way paid $1.3bnintoBrazil’sAmazonFund

and  were poised to donatemore before

concerns  about Mr Bolsonaro’senviron­

mental apathyledthemtofreezeit.

In  theabsence of federalleadership,

some statesarecreatingtheirownclimate

policies,  including subsidised loans for

low­carbon farmers andconcessions of

public landforsustainableuse.(Elevengo­

vernors  aregoingtogotocop26.)Brazil’s

Congress is debating a bill that would

create a regulatedcarbonmarket,whichis

supportedbymuchoftheprivatesector.

But  while Mr Bolsonaro remains in

power,  it  seemsunlikelythatmuchwill

change. Neitherhenormembersofhisin­

ner circle seemtotaketheclimateserious­

ly. Progressmayhavetowaituntilafterthe

election  in2022,whichMrBolsonaro is

likely to lose.n

LatinAmericanTV

1001 episodes

S

herezade, a youngwidow, needs cash

to  pay  for  her  son’s  leukaemia  treat­

ment.  She  accepts  $150,000  in  return  for

sleeping  with  her  boss  Onur,  a  balding

misogynist who advises his friends not to

trust  women  because  “perfidy  fills  them

like the weave of their beautiful garments”.

Unexpectedly,  the  pair  fall  in  love.  But—

plot  spoiler—it  takes  two  failed  engage­

ments, one divorce, the appearance of ille­

gitimate children, a miscarriage caused by

poisonous  tea,  a  few  assassinations  and

one  suicide  for  the  couple  finally  to  com­

mit to one another in episode 179 (the son

survives, too). 

When  the  Turkish  soap  opera  “1001

Nights”, loosely based on the classic collec­

tion of Middle Eastern folk tales, first aired

on Chilean tvin 2014, it broke viewing re­

cords.  Mega,  the  ailing  broadcaster  that

bought the rights, was the only channel to

make  a  profit  that  year.  It  has  bought  the

rights  to  26  other  Turkish  shows  since

then,  and  remains  one  of  the  country’s

most popular channels.

The  largest  market  for  Turkish  shows

used  to  be  the  Middle  East.  But  recently

Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi

Arabia  have  boycotted  or  banned  Turkish

shows because of the country’s embrace of

the  Muslim  Brotherhood  and  its  support

for  Qatar  (the  relative  freedom  of  Turkish

female  characters  does  not  help,  either).

Latin  America  has  filled  the  gap.  Turkish

production  companies  say  that  a  third  of

revenue  from  foreign  sales  comes  from

S ANTIAGO

Why Turkish telenovelas are thriving