Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff survived an unexpectedly strong challenge from a prominent environmentalist to stay in office. Now, less than three months into her second term, Rousseff has sparked controversy by appointing an avowed climate-change sceptic as science minister. The choice of Aldo Rebelo, a Communist law-maker who last July called the idea of global warming "incompatible with current knowledge", follows a decade in which Brazil has slowed Amazon deforestation and claimed a leadership role in international climate policy. Rebelo promised to uphold the government's climate stance when he assumed his post at the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation on 2 January, but his appointment has stirred fears that Brazil may backslide on environmental protection.
展开▼
