CLIMATE

Brazil has been experiencing dangerous heat waves and droughts! In 2024, over 60 million people in Brazil faced extreme temperatures, with some places reaching temperatures 8-10°C above normal!

Scientists say heat waves have become seven times more frequent in Brazil over the past 70 years, and 2024 saw the eighth heat wave to hit the country in just one year! Some places got so hot that Brazil now has its first region with desert characteristics in northeastern Bahia state.

The Amazon rainforest experienced such severe drought that communities became stranded without fuel, food, or clean water because the rivers dried up! The drought was so bad it made scientists worry that parts of the Amazon could die and stop producing the oxygen we all need to breathe.

Brazil is creating early warning systems to tell people when dangerous heat waves are coming, just like weather forecasts but for dangerous temperatures! They're building cooling centers in cities where people can go for free when it gets too hot. Brazil is hosting COP30 in 2025 in Belém, the gateway to the Amazon, showing the world its commitment to fighting climate change. President Lula signed a law requiring all schools to teach a national climate curriculum by 2025, so kids can learn how to protect the environment!

Brazil has created special satellites and technology to spot fires quickly before they get too big. They're hiring more firefighters and forest rangers to protect the Amazon.

The government is working with other countries to share firefighting equipment and techniques. Deforestation rates in the Amazon dropped by almost one-third between 2023 and 2024 because of stronger law enforcement and better protection of the forest!

Brazil has been hit by devastating floods! In May 2024, the state of Rio Grande do Sul experienced record-breaking floods that affected over 2.3 million people and caused 183 deaths. More than 420mm of rain fell in just a few days - that's like getting four months of rain all at once!

Brazil now has many more floods, droughts, and storms than it used to have. These extreme weather events happen much more often now than they did when our parents were kids, and they cost Brazil billions of dollars every year to fix the damage!

The floods destroy homes, schools, and hospitals, and make it impossible for people to get clean drinking water or electricity.

Brazil is building better flood warning systems using satellites to predict when dangerous rains are coming. They're creating emergency shelters and teaching communities how to prepare for floods. The government is investing in better drainage systems in cities and protecting wetlands that naturally absorb flood water. They're also building stronger buildings that can withstand extreme weather.

Air pollution is a big problem in Brazil's cities! In big industrial cities like São Paulo, many more people get sick and die from breathing polluted air compared to other parts of Brazil.

Air pollution kills thousands of Brazilians every year, and this number keeps growing. The pollution comes from cars, factories, and smoke from the forest fires. In São Paulo, breathing the air can be like smoking over 1 cigarette per day!

When the air is polluted, kids can get asthma, have trouble breathing during sports, and get more colds and coughs.

Rio de Janeiro joined the "Breathe Cities" initiative in 2024 to help monitor air quality and help 6.7 million residents breathe cleaner air. Scientists believe that if they can make the air much cleaner by 2030, it will save many lives and prevent thousands of children from getting asthma!

Brazil passed new air quality laws in 2024, including the Brazilian National Air Quality Policy, and cities are adding more electric buses that don't pollute the air. They're also creating more parks and green spaces that help clean the air naturally.