This study reveals that subsidized rural credit has been widely channeled by various financial institutions to finance producers who allowed the destruction of native vegetation.

The report presents an unprecedented overview of the implementation of the Forest Code in Brazilian states, featuring updated 2024 data.

CPI/PUC-Rio and Amazon 2030 identify the potential of the public-private partnership models for Brazilian administrative law in order to promote the restoration of degraded public lands.

CPI/PUC-Rio and Amazon 2030 map and analyze Brazil’s regulatory frameworks and governance structures related to the bioeconomy, with a focus on the post-2023 period.

Researchers from Climate Policy Initiative/Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro CPI/PUC-Rio quantify the financial flows directed toward agriculture and forests between 2021 and 2023 that are aligned with climate objectives.

CPI/PUC-Rio and Amazon 2030 analize the high concentration of deforestation in a small group of rural settlements in the Amazon.

CPI/PUC-Rio and Amazônia 2030 analyze the impact of changes in rainfall patterns caused by deforestation on national electricity generation.

To better understand and increase the effectiveness of investments in pasture recovery, researchers from CPI/PUC-RIO evaluated the ABC Recuperação credit line, Brazil’s main policy instrument used to promote restoration in recent years.

New study by CPI/PUC-Rio shows the mapping of finance flows for bioeconomy in Brazil from 2021 to 2023.

20 civil society organizations analyzed the global landscape for financing bioeconomy in a global scale, with the purpose of supporting the G20’s Global Initiative for Bioeconomy.

Researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio conducted a comprehensive study on the BCB’s sustainability initiatives to assess the bank’s efforts to combat deforestation and conversion.

Researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio analyze the amount of subsidized rural credit associated with deforestation in Brazil, providing unpublished property-level data.

Seeking to contribute to the construction of the Brazilian Sustainable Taxonomy, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio analyzed the intersections and complementarities between the main initiatives to define land use sustainability in Brazil.

Report organized jointly with iCS, CEBRI and CONCITO provides recommendations to guide the international dialogue on climate finance and actions for the Brazilian government within the context of the G20.

CPI/PUC-Rio provides three recommendations to enhance legal deforestation control in the Matopiba region.

The new publication from CPI/PUC-Rio analyzes where, how, and why to promote the restoration of forests and other forms of vegetation, identifying three essential factors to drive large-scale restoration in Brazil.

This publication is part of a project to permanently monitor the implementation of the Forest Code in Brazilian states, with contributions from environmental and agricultural bodies at the state level. 

Analysis of the evolution of forest concessions in the Amazon allows for the recommendation of new governance structure for concessions in the Amazon region.

The new CPI/PUC-Rio publication analyzes the main modalities of forest compensation in Brazilian MATOPIBA, identifying state and federal policies.

Researchers from the CPI/PUC-Rio reveal that the access to credit for family farmers in Brazil is both limited and unequal.

Researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio analyzed how brazilian environmental policies dialogue with the European Union Deforestation-Free Regulation.

Watch the video to learn about the climate finance flows for land use in Brazil.

Discover the publications in CPI/PUC-Rio combatting deforestation portfolio.

Discover the publications in CPI/PUC-Rio agriculture portfolio.

The carbon market is an efficient strategy in combating the climate crisis in Brazil, with global impacts to change the vocation of the forest, avoiding the tipping point.

CPI/PUC-Rio conducted an unprecedented tracking exercise to quantify the climate-aligned financial flows directed to land use in Brazil.

This publication analyzes deforestation in settlements in the Amazon between 2012 and 2022, suggesting priority areas for government action to combat deforestation in the reigon.

This study presents a policy map for climate mitigation and adaptation in Brazilian agriculture, identifying the government agencies responsible for implementation and the presence of elements of social and economic justice within each policy.

The study evaluates agricultural vulnerability to drought events in the Caatinga, analyzing the climatic risk to which rural producers in the region are exposed.

In this study, CPI/PUC-Rio researchers contributed, in partnership with Coalizão Brasil and Agroicone, with proposals to boost sustainability in the 2023/24 Agricultural Plan.

In this video, CPI/PUC-Rio presents the results of the Amazon Domino Effect, that can lead to a tipping point.

Discover the publications in CPI/PUC-Rio Rural Credit Portfolio.

Researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio present unprecedented results on the impacts of deforestation in different regions of the forest. They identify that, on average, for every 100 trees deforested, 22 additional trees die in regions distant from the deforestation due to lack of water.

In this study, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio analyze deforestation and land tenure within the Amazon biome to identify critical areas for public authorities to address in each territory.

To contribute to a better understanding of climate risk and the design of public policies for agricultural risk management, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio examined rural insurance in Brazil, analyzing the coverage of this financial instrument for soybeans, the main insured crop.

In this publication, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio provide an unprecedented and updated snapshot of the implementation of the Forest Code in all Brazilian states to identify the primary challenges that must be overcome and to present an agenda with seven key actions for the effective implementation of the Forest Code across the country.

CPI/PUC-Rio researchers tackle the concept of rural just transition in Brazil, providing a baseline of smallholders in two of Brazil’s most critical biomes: the Cerrado and the Caatinga.

CPI/PUC-Rio researchers have created an innovative landscape for public and private financing of road and rail projects in the North Region and in Brazil. This report fills a knowledge gap about the investment scenario of the land transport sector over the last decade.

In this study, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio evaluate the impact of training and technical assistance delivered by the ABC Cerrado Project and provide resource-channeling options aimed at achieving greater adoption of sustainable practices in rural areas.

Researchers from the Climate Policy Initiative/Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (CPI/PUC-Rio), in partnership with AMZ2030, have studied the concept of bioeconomy, mapped national and international policies and strategies on the topic, and analyzed the main regulatory frameworks and governance institutions associated with this activity in Brazil.

In this report, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio analyze the inner workings of both PROAGRO and the PSR and unveil how the design of each program generates different incentives for producers, insurance claims adjusters, and financial agents, with an impact on the effectiveness of public spending.

This publication sheds light on the importance of forest degradation to be included in Brazilian conservation policy and its role for the sustainable development of the Amazon.

In this insight brief, researchers from Climate Policy Initiative/Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (CPI/PUC-Rio) present evidence of the relationship between mining royalties and development in the state of Pará, Brazil.

In this study, CPI/PUC-Rio researchers have mapped the main phases of the life cycle of land transportation infrastructure projects, addressed the decision-making process, and developed methods to map projects’ economic and environmental impacts.

In this brief researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio analyze the performance of BNDES in the Legal Amazon from 2009 to 2019. The analysis shows that the Bank directed its investments to the electric power generation sector in the region.

CPI/PUC-Rio researchers point out the contrast of electricity supply and identify “two Brazils”: the interconnected Brazil that runs on renewable energy and the isolated Brazil powered by fossil fuels.

The study evaluates the effects of BNDES rural credit for investment in machinery and equipment on agricultural activity and land use in Brazil.

In this project, researchers from Climate Policy Initiative/Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (CPI/PUC-Rio) map the quality of local infrastructure in the state of Pará, Brazil.

This report presents groundbreaking estimates of the accessibility of the municipalities in the Legal Amazon. CPI/PUC-Rio researchers break down the accessibility metrics into different components to show that the poor quality of the transportation network is the key factor in the greater isolation of the municipalities.

In this study, CPI/PUC-Rio researchers discuss how improvements in delimiting the area of influence for logistics infrastructure projects can help mitigate the socio-environmental risks of these projects.

This document discusses how expanding access to phone and high-speed internet services has the potential to boost the economy in the Legal Amazon.

Researchers from Climate Policy Initiative/Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (CPI/PUC-Rio) present evidence that garimpeiro cooperatives have been used as a means to enable industrial or near-industrial-scale mineral exploration under a weaker regulatory framework.

In this brief, researchers from the CPI/PUC-Rio show that, although rules establishing priority classes for beneficiaries may be apparently aligned with policy objectives, loose eligibility criteria for these classes mean that there is no real prioritization in resource allocation. In other words, priorities are not prioritized.

The study presents an analysis of BNDES performance and evolution in terms of rural credit, as well as the characteristics of credit granted by the bank for the purchase of agricultural machinery and equipment.

This publication is part of a project to permanently monitor the implementation of the Forest Code in Brazilian states, with contributions from environmental and agricultural bodies at the state level. 

This study from CPI/PUC-Rio presents the main findings from an analysis of the occurrence of forest fires in the Brazilian Amazon and their relationship with subsequent deforestation.

This document presents the main results of an analogous analysis that explores publicly available, more recent, and more detailed data about forest loss from the Real-Time Deforestation Detection System (Sistema de Detecção de Desmatamento em Tempo Real – DETER), also produced by INPE.

This publication study and analyzes the prior oversight by the TCU of federal railway and highway concessions, focusing on how the court has assessed the socio-environmental aspects of the projects, with the aim of mitigating risks.

In this insight, CPI/PUC-Rio shows that Amazon deforestation affects rainfall in the state of Mato Grosso – one of the most important agricultural hubs in the world, home to more than three million people, and 8 hydroelectric power plants.

This report consolidates the main findings of the academic literature that rigorously evaluates policies aimed at combating deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. Additionally, it draws on empirical evidence to propose ways of strengthening Brazil’s policy agenda for protecting the Amazon Forest whilst promoting the region’s sustainable development. The report thereby aims to contribute to the design and implementation of an effective policy framework for Amazon conservation.

In this report, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio dig deeper into the link between cattle ranching and deforestation in the Amazon to investigate the economic dynamics behind it.

This study compiles a detailed overview of the four key federal infrastructure projects – either planned or being upgraded – in the state of Pará: Ferrogrão and BR-155/158, not yet started, and BR-163/230/MT/PA and BR-230, which are currently in the process of improvement.

In this Technical Note, CPI/PUC-Rio researchers draw off previous work and outline how the legal framework for railroad authorizations suffers from similar problems.

This work seeks to provide a deeper understanding of rural financing in the Brazilian biomes and aims to help improve the credit policy and adapt this instrument to the specific challenges and context of the Cerrado.

Researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio conducted a survey and an analysis of all federal and state legislation on forest compensation currently in effect to better understand the evolution of forest compensation from a legislative perspective at the federal level, identify the federal regulations currently in effect, and provide an overview of state legislation, showing how states regulate the different elements of forest compensation.

This brief summarizes the findings from CPI/PUC-Rio that calculates the potential for increasing pasture productivity in the Legal Amazon by disseminating technologies that are widely used in just some parts of the region to all parts of the region.

In this brief, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio identify and analyze the socio-environmental components covered by the terms of reference for Technical, Economic and Environmental Feasibility Studies and Environmental Assessment Study.

An assessment by CPI/PUC-Rio investigated the regulations applicable to federal railroad and highway concessions granted to the private sector.

This infographic highlights how recent changes to legislation may increase deforestation and impunity in the Brazilian Amazon.

This summary presents an overview of findings from the report, Análise do Novo Procedimento Administrativo Sancionador do Ibama e seus Reflexos no Combate ao Desmatamento na Amazônia, published by Climate Policy Initiative/Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (CPI/PUC-Rio) that analyzes the impacts of changes in Brazil’s legislation and assesses whether they can bring greater effectiveness to Brazil’s federal environmental agency’s (Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis – IBAMA) administrative sanctioning procedure.

Abandoned infrastructure projects, of little use or with negative socio-environmental impacts are symptoms of inconsistent feasibility assessments. Researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio analyze the New Bidding Law and identify a unique opportunity to strengthen these analyses, through the regulation of the so-called preliminary technical studies.

CPI/PUC-Rio highlights six specific standards and conditions of rural credit, providing evidence for public actions and policies for local development, the sustainability of agricultural production, and environmental conservation.

To enhance understanding of this phenomenon, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio empirically characterized the dynamics of degradation and its relationship with clear-cut deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon.

In this report, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio analyze in detail the public contracting process for EVTEA and EIAs for land transport infrastructure projects in the Amazon and reveal: a lack of transparency in the contracting process and a lack of criteria for selection, evaluation and approval of the studies.

Understanding the impact of rural credit is essential for formulating better agricultural policies in Brazil. In this Insight, researchers from the CPI / PUC-Rio detail the effects of credit in each Brazilian biome.

The report provides a detailed analysis of state regulations and identifies actions underway in the states. It highlights progress made to date and the strategies enacted by states that are farther
ahead, as well as key gaps and challenges, and opportunities to accelerate the implementation of the law.

In this report, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio provide an in-depth analysis of Brazilian rural credit policy and discuss challenges and recent progress in public policy. The analysis benefits from years of research and discussions with policymakers, the private sector, and academic researchers.

CPI’s Sustainable Infrastructure projects generate evidence on social, economic and environmental impacts of infrastructure projects to help governments successfully address local sustainable development, and also to inform civil society about infrastructure decisions.

In this brief, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio and Inter.B collaborated to analyze the instruments available for infrastructure planning – particularly those related to the land transport sector.

In this Whitepaper, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio highlights the need for the logistics projects’ EVTEA and EIAs to incorporate and correctly identify the indirect effects that result from the changes in transportation costs induced by improvements. It describes how using a combination of geoprocessing tools and statistical analysis can be used to identify these impacts and provides an example of their importance.

CPI/PUC-Rio has assessed Ferrogrão’s governance, planning, and environmental risks as a way to contribute to the ongoing debate on sustainable infrastructure policies and projects in the country. This executive summary presents three studies conducted over the last year, which: (i) analyze the robustness of Ferrogrão’s planning based on a set of structuring questions, which should be prepared in the pre-feasibility stage; (ii) evaluate the administrative rites and the governance of decision-making related to the project; and (iii) develop an innovative methodology to understand Ferrogrão’s area of influence and deforestation risk.

The present work aims to explain the EE auction design and to point out and assess the risks of the proposed model regarding its implementation in Roraima’s pilot. The contributions seek to mitigate the risks tied to the Winner’s Curse, perfect the chosen measurement and verification methodology and present the implementation challenges associated to the misalignment between the interests of the electricity distributor and those of the central planner.

In this report, CPI/PUC-Rio researchers analyze the current risk management instruments and public policies and discuss pathways for improving their impact on Brazilian agriculture.

In this technical note, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio (i) analyze how areas of influence are currently defined by government bodies and in the Terms of Reference for EVTEA and EIAs for land transportation infrastructure projects; (ii) present a set of recommendations for the adoption of clearer criteria for the definition and demarcation of areas of influence for new projects, from a perspective that explicitly incorporates where the direct and indirect effects of this type of undertaking will occur; and (iii) propose a dialogue between the EVTEA and the EIA.

This brief analyze cooperatives’ participation in rural credit, addressing both recent developments and potential challenges.

This paper offers recommendations on how to move forward in developing remote systems to monitor secondary vegetation.

This policy brief, analyzes the production line of air conditioning sector in Brazil with a focus on productive and energy efficiency.

In this technical note, researchers at CPI/PUC-Rio, analyze the legislative process of the new Concessions Law bill from a social and environmental perspective. They recommend items that could be incorporated into the bill to head off potential conflicts currently handled later in the project life cycle — notably during the environmental licensing procedure — and which would foster bidding on more robust, higher quality projects, promoting safer investments, and ensuring social and environmental protections.

New work from CPI/PUC-Rio shows that protected territories shielded forests under their domain, but they also appear to have deflected deforestation to unprotected regions. The findings highlight the local effectiveness of these territories, and thereby support their use in protecting high-value areas. Yet, results also reinforce the importance of pursuing protection strategies in combination with integrated conservation policy efforts to reduce deforestation throughout the Amazon.

Researchers from the CPI/PUC-Rio prepared 10 questions and answers to clarify what is at stake with Provisional Measure 910.

New work from CPI/PUC-Rio shows that environmental monitoring and law enforcement exclusively aimed at reducing Amazon deforestation helped boost tropical regeneration. Results suggest that environmental and socio-economic gains from conservation policies may be larger than initially presumed. Today, it would be both timely and strategic for Brazil to incorporate the promotion and protection of tropical regeneration into its conservation policy agenda.

This study, carried out by researchers from the CPI/PUC-Rio, analyzes the impact of the Manaus Free Trade Zone (ZFM) on Brazilian industry, especifically productive efficiency and energy efficiency. The researchers note that the efficiency levels of the ZFM and Brazil are similar, that is, despite the high volume of tax breaks granted to the ZFM industries, there is no counterpart in terms of efficiency.

In this work, Climate Policy Initiative (CPI/PUC-RIO) provides a detailed impact analysis of the Brazilian Rural Credit policy on agricultural production, land use and deforestation.

In this work, researchers from CPI/PUC-Rio show that the construction of the Ferrogrão railroad will induce farmers and ranchers located in the state of Mato Grosso to expand their production, increasing land demand. If no mitigation measures are implemented, this will lead to the clearing of about 2,043 square kilometers of native vegetation in almost forty municipalities of the state of Mato Grosso.

This document summarizes the main findings and takeaways of a full report (available in Portuguese) produced by analysts from (CPI/PUC-Rio). The full report provides an overview of the Forest Code in Brazil’s states, and gives a detailed analysis of regulatory efforts at the state level. It identifies actions already underway in the states, progress made, major challenges and flaws, and primary public policy recommendations.

This white paper from CPI/PUC-Rio, outlines the close connection between cattle productivity and the share of farmland devoted to this activity. Estimates using Agricultural Census data from the last four decades show that these variables are inversely related, indicating that cattle ranching becomes more productive as ranch size declines. Additional empirical exercises suggest that the cost of the land relative to the capital might explain this relationship. Finally, the white paper presents policy lessons that might show a pathway for intensifying cattle ranching without inducing further deforestation.

The present study, conducted by researchers at CPI/PUC-Rio, indicates that this monitoring system works. Results also suggest that forest protection did not interfere with local agricultural production, and that its expected benefits outweighed the associated policy costs.

This infographic developed by CPI/PUC-Rio research team shows that protecting the Amazon is important for economic growth

This project developed by CPI/PUC-Rio, aims to advance proposals for changes to current regulations and guidelines that would incorporate socio-environmental risk assessments throughout the decision-making processes and lifecycle of infrastructure projects. Guided by experts in these fields, the project will also promote dialogue with key stakeholders involved in decision-making and implementation of the regulatory proposals and guidelines.

In this document, researchers with the CPI/PUC-Rio analyze the opportunity for a comprehensive discussion that would ensure better infrastructure and environmental conservation in Brazil, using the proposed legislation as a starting point. This could benefit the productive sector and society as a whole.

This publication summarizes the findings from a recent research project by CPI/PUC-Rio which computes the capital costs of maximizing Brazil’s agricultural production without increasing deforestation. This research provides unique insights in potential policy changes needed in Brazil to help farmers overcome the constraints they face to invest in modern technologies, inputs and equipment.

This document, which was elaborated by CPI/PUC-Rio, recommends the association between Rural Credit and the Forest Code to be put in practice in the next Plano Safra (2019/2020) – which is Brazilian annual agricultural plan.

This brief summarizes findings from an emerging research by CPI/PUC-Rio on the role rural credit plays in Brazil. CPI analysts, under INPUT, determined that rural credit makes a significant difference in raising agricultural productivity and improving land use. The analysts conclude that lack of financial resources often limits farmers’ production possibilities in Brazil. Improved credit access allows producers to make new decisions that lead to higher productivity.

This white paper, developed by CPI/PUC-Rio, proposes actions to solidify and improve monitoring and law enforcement in the fight against illegal deforestation. These proposals draw on empirical evidence on the effectiveness and limitations of Brazilian public policy.

O relatório, realizado pelo CPI/PUC-Rio em cooperação com o Banco Interamericano de Desenvolvimento mostra que o Brasil tem potencial para impulsionar o crescimento econômico sustentável usando suas terras de maneira mais produtiva, dando escala à ação em energia renovável e eficiência energética e reduzindo o tempo gasto no transporte de carga e o desperdiçado pelos trabalhadores no trânsito.

This technical note addresses the Law 12,651/2012, nearly seven years since its enactment the debate has subsided about its implementation, and amendments to a provisional measure are being considered by Congress. The provisional measure addresses the necessary extension of the deadline for entry into the Environmental Regularization Program (PRA), but also contains amendments that aim to deeply change the law, threatening the implementation of the new Forest Code. Due to the procedures for approving provisional measures, these changes are being proposed without sufficient reflection or debate, without any public participation, and with limited parliamentary involvement. Finally, it is important to emphasize that the amendments do not meet the standards of urgency and relevance typical of provisional measures

In this brief, researchers at CPI/PUC-Rio propose a starting point for this effort. They argue that cleared lands within public domain in the Amazon offer a unique opportunity for Brazil to implement large-scale reforestation by relying on natural forest regeneration.

In this report, CPI/PUC-Rio explores municipality-level information on revenues, operating costs and farm equipment to quantify the costs of maximizing Brazil’s agricultural production without increasing deforestation.

How can sustainable production process be accelerated in Brazil? What is the role of public policy? How can existing financial instruments in the country be reformed to align a production and protection agenda? CPI/PUC-Rio has identified three directives for policy alignment that will make important headway in reforming rural credit and creating stronger incentives for environmental conservation.

Based on economic and policy analysis by CPI/PUC-Rio in cooperation with the Inter-American Development Bank , Brazil’s Ministry of Planning, Development and Management, and the WWF, This report looks at three sectors that are critical to creating a greener future for the nation: land use, energy, and transportation. For all three sectors, CPI delivers one message: promoting economic growth aligns with achieving Brazil’s climate commitments.

This new report researchers at CPI/PUC-Rio and INPUT aims to fill this gap. It leverages recently released municipality-level information from Brazil’s 2017 Agricultural Census to describe the evolution of three agricultural practices typically connected with processes of agricultural intensification: direct planting system, a modern soil conservation technique, tractors, and fertilizers.

This brief introduces an analysis of energy efficiency and productivity in Brazilian industry. CPI/PUC-Rio researchers show that, energy efficiency and productive efficiency in the Brazilian industry are related. Because of that, challenges in promoting energy efficiency align with broader issues regarding sectoral productivity.

In this brief, CPI/PUC-Rio analysts identify features of the rural credit policy that create a fragmentation of rules and, consequently, additional artificial variation in credit access and loan conditions

Compliance with the rules by rural producers is fundamental to the effective implementation of the Forest Code. To assist them in complying with the law, the Climate Policy Initiative/Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro (CPI/PUC-Rio) and Land Use Initiative (INPUT – Iniciativa para o Uso da Terra) offers an insight of Supreme Court decision and practical implications for producers.

In this Brief, CPI/PUC-Rio analysts, under INPUT, have partnered with the Central Bank of Brazil to conduct a comprehensive analysis of rural credit distribution channels. It provides an overview of how the distribution channels for credit generate additional uncertainties for producers. It describes how credit is administered and distributed, focusing on the effects access to agricultural funding has at the local level.

Hydroelectricity is the largest source of energy in Brazil’s portfolio and has brought with it a charged economic and environmental debate about the impact of hydropower plants (HPP) on their surrounding areas. This brief summarizes an analysis that measures the effects of HPP’s on economic performance and finances of municipalities.

This new study by CPI/PUC-Rio researchers with INPUT compares forest protection and land use legislation of some of the world’s top ten exporters of agricultural products, including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany and the United States, in order to understand: What does compliance with the Brazilian Forest Code mean compared to what other countries are required to do by law? This exploratory legal analysis focuses on answering this first question by investigating whether other countries have limitations on the use of private rural properties similar those imposed by the Brazilian Forest Code.

Renewable resources are at the center of the discussion on how to move towards a clean and reliable energy system around the world and are seen as a key instrument in combatting greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. Brazil especially holds potential for advancing its level of solar energy through distributed generation, which generates power on-site at the point of consumption. In this new study, CPI researchers analyzed more than 5.000 municipalities in Brazil and show that demandside factors drive consumer uptake of PV distributed energy generation.

The analysts observe that the rise of flex cars is a key channel for improving consumer benefits and should be taken into consideration by policymakers, especially when they consider expanding production and markets for alternative fuels, such as hydrogen and electricity.

Given the growth of the secondary regenration of the Brazilian Amazon, INPUT researchers at Climate Policy Initiative (CPI)/ PUC-Rio conducted a study to show its possible causes and consequences.

Secure rural land rights would benefit the whole country. This CPI’s infographic explains why this is a key issue in Brazil.

This analysis provides an in-depth look at the evolution of rural property rights in Brazil and the history that has shaped the complex situation the nation now faces.

Major transformations in agriculture have promoted yield gains, without increasing new forest clearings. The studies provide four examples in which this is the case — the soybean revolution in the Cerrado, the expansion of electricity in rural areas, a recent surge of sugarcane, and a change in the relative crop-to-beef prices.

This study identifies productivity shocks using the expansion of rural electrification in Brazil during 1960-2000. The analysis shows that electrification increased crop productivity, and farmers subsequently both expand farming through frontier land conversion, but also shift away from cattle ranching and into crop cultivation.

Given this new focus on smaller clearings, which rural farmers and ranchers often instigate, INPUT researchers at Climate Policy Initiative (CPI)/ PUC-Rio investigated a critical question: do rural settlements cause deforestation?

This report shows that there are important social, economic, and environmental costs associated with the lack of well-defined property rights; while at the same time presenting the many complexities within Brazil’s system of land governance that need to be addressed in order to improve the system.

Despite the importance of Matopiba to Brazil’s economy, the impact and extent of this surge in agricultural output has not been thoroughly studied. For instance, this study shows that agricultural expansion in Matopiba is heavily concentrated in municipalities located in the Cerrado biome.

This publication provides insights about the widespread reach and impacts of the sugarcane mills’ expansion in Brazilian municipalities.

If there seems to be general agreement that transport infrastructure is lacking, what is the hurdle that prevents investment? In this paper, INPUT researchers at Climate Policy Initiative in Brazil investigate how the regulation of this market may be to blame.

The purpose of this paper is to assess how the nature of property rights in Brazil will affect the implementation of the Forest Code and the realization of the potential positive environmental impacts. This paper analyzes the historical evolution of property rights in Brazil, and it examines how the institutional structure of administering property rights affects the incentives and behavior for property owners.

These step-by-step flowcharts show how to navigate the Brazilian Forest Code and identify where potential problems may arise. They also illustrate how the environmental compliance process may differ at the state level from the process described in the Forest Code, another challenge for implementation and compliance.

This infographic gives an overview of what is happening in Amazon deforestation.

This analysis, produced by researchers at CPI/PUC-Rio, is the first in a series that seeks to clarify the Forest Code in hopes of accelerating implementation and ensuring its success. This document aims at providing an overview of the code and its instruments.

In order to achieve its climate targets and to promote efficient land use, Brazil must implement and enforce the environmental protections outlined in its Forest Code of 2012. Though it has promise, the legislation relies heavily on the compliance of Brazilian states and individual landowners to ensure its success. These two in-depth policy briefs address these challenges by facilitating understanding of and compliance with the Forest Code.

Increasing global demand for food and the need to address climate change risk make it ever more urgent to both protect ecosystems and use land more productively and efficiently. Brazil is a key player in this context and has made significant gains in recent decades. Between 1970 and 2006, its average national cattle farm productivity doubled and its average national crop farm productivity quadrupled. More recently, the country’s conservation efforts have been successful in reducing the rate of Amazon forest clearings to its lowest level in 30 years.

Annual deforestation rates in Brazil’s Amazon fell by almost 80% between 2004 and 2012 due in large part to conservation policies Brazil introduced in 2004. While this is welcome news to policymakers intent on combating forest clearings, a new challenge has emerged: deforestation now occurs on smaller tracts of land, which is more difficult to detect and remains unaddressed.

This paper from CPI/PUC-Rio reaserch team, studies the impact of technological change in agriculture on land use in Central Brazil from 1960 to 1985. It explores technological innovations that adapted soybeans to the region to estimate the effect of these innovations on land use. Following the technological innovations, municipalities more suitable for soybean cultivation experienced increases in cropland and decreases in native pastures.

This paper from CPI/PUC-Rio reaserch team, examines the impact of changes in agricultural land use on deforestation at the local level in the Tapajós basin in the Brazilian Amazon. We use exogenous variation in crop to beef relative prices to investigate the effects of pasture to crop conversion on deforestation. Our findings indicate that increases in crop to beef relative prices increase the rate of pasture to crop conversion.

This analysis, conducted by CPI/PUC-Rio, shows that conservation policies were effective at curbing Amazon deforestation, helping avoid an estimated 73,000 km² of Amazon forest clearings from 2005 through 2009.

One crucial aspect of efficient land use is agricultural risk management, which includes protecting farmers from adverse shocks, such as unfavorable weather and pests, and from price risk caused by volatility in output prices. The latter is currently a major concern for Brazilian farmers and policymakers — not only because unmanaged price risk can result in low income for farmers, and thereby affect productivity, but moreover because it can restrict farmers’ ability to raise credit, which can affect agricultural growth more broadly.

In 2007, 36 Brazilian municipalities were responsible for 45% of the deforestation in the Amazon Biome – an astonishing figure considering Brazil has 547 municipalities that transect the Biome. In 2008, the Brazilian Ministry of Environment set out to address this by blacklisting thirty-six municipalities, setting them as Municípios Prioritários (Priority Municipalities, or MPs).

When compared with other countries, Brazil’s land rental markets fall short. Only 3.3% of Brazilian agricultural land was under lease or sharecropping contracts in the latest World Census of Agriculture. In contrast, this figure is about 33% in Europe and almost 38% in the United States. Considering Brazil’s large land area and the extensive portion of this area occupied by agriculture and pastures, the potential of land rentals to improve agricultural productivity is huge.

Apesar do PROINFA ter sido bem sucedido quanto às suas metas de capacidade instalada – de fato, foi responsável por grande parte do crescimento de 29 MW para 2.010 MW em capacidade eólica instalada no Brasil entre 2004 e 2012 – nossa análise sugere que problemas com o desenho dos contratos reduziram o custo-benefício do programa.

We find that there is ample scope for enhanced protection of natural resources and growth of agricultural production in Brazil within a Production and Protection framework. From a protection standpoint, the country would benefit from developing mechanisms that significantly drive up the private cost of clearing native vegetation, as well as through the advancement of market-based incentives that promote sustainable practices. From a production standpoint, there is room to increase Brazilian agricultural production via productivity gains, at no apparent cost to environmental conservation.

A no-till farming method called the Direct Planting System (DPS) is one of the most important developments in agriculture in the past decades. Farmers who adopt the DPS produce higher crop yields at a lower cost while generating lower carbon emissions from their farming, outcomes that benefit both farmers and the climate. Adoption of the DPS does not have any relevant upfront costs and results in more reliable yields than traditional farming. However, nearly forty years after the introduction of the DPS in Southern Brazil (in 1971), adoption levels remain very low throughout the country.

We estimate that DETER-based environmental monitoring and law enforcement policies prevented the clearing of over 59,500 km² of Amazon forest area from 2007 through 2011. Deforestation observed during this period totaled 41,500 km² – 59% less than in the absence of the policy change. We also find that the policy change had no impact on agricultural production.

Does Credit Affect Deforestation? takes a look at Resolution 3,545, which placed conditions on farmers seeking rural credit concessions in the Brazilian Amazon Biome. Our analysis suggests that Resolution 3,545 helped curb deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon Biome. We estimate that the resolution prevented approximately BRL 2.9 billion (USD 1.4 billion) in loans from 2008 through 2011. This reduction in credit in turn prevented over 2,700 km2 of forest area from being cleared, which represents a 15% decrease in deforestation in the biome during the period.

Brazilian deforestation rates fell from 27,000 km2 in 2004 to 7,000 km2 at the end of the decade. Results indicate that the conservation policies associated with the policy turning points were effective at curbing Amazon deforestation, helping avoid an estimated 73,000 km2 of Amazon forest clearings from 2005 through 2009. This is equivalent to approximately 2.7 billion tons of stored CO2, which our estimates value at 13.2 billion US dollars.