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Scientists rejoice at the election results in Brazil |
On October 31, according to Nature, scientists were relieved that Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won the Brazilian presidential election. They say current leaders are ignoring science, undermining environmental policy and belittling minorities. As a result, the country’s scientists and academics broadly support Lula’s appointment.
Lula, 77, founded the Labor Party in 1980 and served as president of Brazil for two consecutive terms from 2003 to 2010, during which he promoted sustainable development, lifted millions of people from poverty and drastically reduced the number of people in the country. Amazon region. He led the Labor Party to invest heavily in supporting the development of science, innovation and education in the country. These have earned him a good international reputation.
“Today is a promising day for Brazil,” said Elisa Orth, a chemist at the Federal University of Paraná. In recent years, President Jair Bolsonaro has cut research funding and attacked scientists, academics, etc., leading many students to choose to stay away from science. Therefore, “we voted for those who believed in science, for those who believed in education”.
Lula, who was jailed for 19 months on bribery charges after leaving office, with her sentence overturned in 2021, was able to run for president this year, garnering nearly 51 percent of the vote in the runoff against incumbent president Bolsonaro. It is reported that Lula will take office in January next year.
In a post-election speech, Lula said addressing environmental issues would be his top priority, along with hunger and poverty. He also welcomed international cooperation to end deforestation in the Amazon to clear land for grazing. Scientists, conservationists and many world leaders working to reduce carbon emissions from deforestation and protect biodiversity welcomed the news. Because during Bolsonaro’s four years in power, the loss of the Amazon rainforest reached the highest level in the last 15 years.
However, while Lula won the presidential election, Bolsonaro’s supporters won the parliamentary election on October 2. This means that the new Lula government will face further obstacles in fulfilling the above agenda.
However, many scientists remain optimistic about the new Brazilian government.
Aline Soterroni, an environmental scientist at the University of Oxford in the UK, said Lula’s government would be challenged to provide support for a new sustainable development agenda, but her past approach to tackling deforestation has given hope.
Lula is the only presidential candidate to mention science during the campaign, cause for hope, said Luis Davidovic, a physicist at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and former president of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences. More importantly, Lula has demonstrated the ability to listen, learn and bring people together.
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