The unequal distribution of environmental goods and bads intensifies inequalities. What is further needed to understand the extent of environmental injustices is the element of coloniality, and,...Show moreThe unequal distribution of environmental goods and bads intensifies inequalities. What is further needed to understand the extent of environmental injustices is the element of coloniality, and, subsequently, decoloniality. In Latin America, scholars have noted indigenous groups make use of decolonial thought and praxis to advocate for their rights. While countries like Bolivia and Ecuador have advanced in implementing a pluristate – wherein indigenous livelihoods and epistemologies are recognized by the state – Brazil is described as incohesive and regressive when regarding indigenous rights. In the Amazon specifically, where natural resources attract business and development projects, indigenous groups have severely suffered from environmental injustices. This research focuses on studying how and to what extent is decoloniality employed to advance environmental justice for indigenous groups in the Amazon. In specific, the research focuses on the Munduruku people of the Tapajós Valley. In analyzing letters, demands, and public statements by the Munduruku, this study was able to infer strategies of decoloniality used to attain justice. Self-determination efforts are made through local governance structures, opposition to central government, and mobilization amongst themselves. Likewise, the Munduruku make use of their epistemologies, knowledge, and connection to their ancestors to press for epistemic justice. Finally, the Munduruku assert that justice for them is also justice for nature, breaking down the hierarchical notion of human/nature. Thus, this study showed that through decolonial strategies, the Munduruku empower themselves, their narrative, and their fight towards attaining a pluristate. With this in mind, this research showcases the need to further integrate indigenous knowledge within national frameworks and the need to confront the underlying structures of oppression that maintain groups like the Munduruku in environmental injustice.Show less
This thesis is an overview of problems of violence towards indigenous people across the world and seeks to analyze how these groups protect themselves through lack of government support. Then,...Show moreThis thesis is an overview of problems of violence towards indigenous people across the world and seeks to analyze how these groups protect themselves through lack of government support. Then, there will be looked into the problems of violence within Brazil and how it relates to environmental crime. The indigenous groups Pataxó and Tupinambá will be used as a case study to look into the violence in the Northeast of Brazil. There will be an analysis of how the Brazilian indigenous protect themselves against violence from land owners invading their lands.Show less
The present thesis investigates the interplay of media narratives and political transitions in Brazil by focusing on the specific press coverage of the Amazon’s conservation and indigenous security...Show moreThe present thesis investigates the interplay of media narratives and political transitions in Brazil by focusing on the specific press coverage of the Amazon’s conservation and indigenous security throughout Jair Bolsonaro and Lula da Silva’s terms. The research examines whether the change in presidency influenced the press’ narratives on these critical issues. The study analyzed a variety of articles from Folha de S. Paulo, O Globo and R7 – three of Brazil’s most read outlets – using Critical Discourse Analysis. The findings showcase a significant shift in the discourses used by both Folha and O Globo associated to the change in President. During Bolsonaro’s presidency, both Folha and O Globo portrayed the politician as undermining the rule of law and democracy, drawing on authoritarian discourses, and strongly criticizing policies detrimental to the Amazon and indigenous communities. Since Lula’s re-election, both news outlets changed their discourses, considerably more positive. Despite this, the three news outlets remain critical and skeptical of the new president’s ability to uphold his promises, and maintain their watchdog reporting role. The research underscores the influential role of media in shaping discourses and shed lights on the evolving journalistic practices responding to political change. Ultimately, this thesis contributes to studies of the relation between the politics and the press in Brazil by illustrating the press’ ability to mitigate their narratives adapting to political transitions.Show less
This thesis explores how the populist radical right seeks to control non-majoritarian liberal institutions through democratic means. Specifically, I test this theory within presidential systems,...Show moreThis thesis explores how the populist radical right seeks to control non-majoritarian liberal institutions through democratic means. Specifically, I test this theory within presidential systems, examining whether a radical right government leads to an increase in legislative proposals that target the disempowerment of constitutional courts. Therefore, my hypothesis is that the number of legislative bills aiming to overcome the autonomy of constitutional courts is higher under populist radical right governments than under non-radical ones. I employ a mixed-method approach, starting with four longitudinal quantitative research and then applying in-depth analyses conducted in Brazil, El Salvador, the Philippines, and the United States to compare instances of radical right governance with those of previous non-radical coalitions in each country. The results generally support the hypothesis, except for a notable deviant case observed in the United States.Show less
The research will carry out a multidisciplinary socio-economic approach to the phenomenon of 'State Capitalism' in Brazil. The term is an expression that designates the mechanism of a political...Show moreThe research will carry out a multidisciplinary socio-economic approach to the phenomenon of 'State Capitalism' in Brazil. The term is an expression that designates the mechanism of a political-economic nature that manifests itself in the relations established between the State, through its public agents and high-level politicians, and large private economic actors (or business groups). It is about Brazilian-style capitalism, with the term crony capitalism as a correspondent, a phenomenon that has been the object of interdisciplinary studies, notably in the areas of Political Sciences, Economics and Law. In this context, the main gaps and bottlenecks that favor or stimulate the use of state- owned companies and banks as institutional channels for shady negotiations, which involve the exchange of favors and distribution of privileges, engendered between the ruling political class and, preponderantly, large private capital, will be object of deep analysis. Such insidious relations may culminate in reverse income transfer, loss of economic efficiency due to misallocation of scarce economic resources, constitution of oligopolies and market reserves, misalignment with the State's social policy projects, and increase in opportunity costs. The patrimonialist and personalist culture underlying the economic and social relations in Brazil has as a probable historical element the model of colonization and extractive exploitation imposed by the Portuguese colonizers, through the formation of the first government structures and the bureaucratic institutional design conceived by the colonizers in their exploratory enterprise. In addition to the historical and cultural value of understanding the phenomenon of 'capitalism of ties' existing in Brazil, as a legacy of the model of exploitation established in this country, its relevant economic and social impacts on public management and Brazilian politics are highlighted. With greater importance, the issues related to governance in state-owned companies and their effects on the political and economic spheres, which constantly lead to the destabilization and weakening of the republican state system, with impacts on representative democracy itself and on the implementation of state policies in the medium and long term. Direct effects can thus be observed in the level of trust of citizens in their public managers and political representatives, undermined by the personalistic and patrimonialist management of large companies and state-owned banks, by the opacity in the process of accountability to society in relation to the investment policies of these companies and by the promiscuous relationships that often permeate the negotiations between these companies, the ruling political class and its support base.Show less
Governance constitutes an important feature of organized crime. Across the world, millions of people live under criminal governance. In such cases, criminal organizations are involved in enforcing...Show moreGovernance constitutes an important feature of organized crime. Across the world, millions of people live under criminal governance. In such cases, criminal organizations are involved in enforcing rules and collecting taxes, providing security, as well as offering basic goods and services. This phenomenon primarily takes place in areas of weak state presence, where the government fails to satisfy the population's basic needs such as physical and social security. As of today, criminal governance remains particularly widespread throughout Latin America. Indeed, the region suffers from high levels of violence and public insecurity, which bear significant impacts on social, economic, and political life. The states of Mexico and Brazil, in particular, are home to some of the largest criminal organizations in the world. The latter include cartels and gang networks of various sizes and organizational structures. In turn, the same organizations have been involved in establishing localized governance practices in their respective countries. Despite being a well-researched concept in academia, criminal governance remains understudied in contexts of crisis. The states of Brazil and Mexico have been greatly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and its negative socioeconomic impacts. In addition, the said crisis profoundly altered the environment in which criminal organizations operate. Using a comparative case study methodology, this thesis, therefore, investigates the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on criminal governance practices from criminal groups in Mexico and Brazil. In doing so, it aims to form a better understanding of how criminal organizations adapted their governance activities to the health crisis.Show less
This study seeks to explore the linkages between organised crime and environmental change in the Amazon region, specifically zooming in on the Brazilian Amazonas. This study focuses on two aspects...Show moreThis study seeks to explore the linkages between organised crime and environmental change in the Amazon region, specifically zooming in on the Brazilian Amazonas. This study focuses on two aspects of this relationship. First, the relationship between state-making and crime, in particular the Brazilian state and crime, to show how ‘organised crime’ emerges as an important constituent of state-making rather than as an anomaly to it. To understand how organized crime and environmental change tie together, the analysis of state-making and governance in the Amazon region is needed. Thereafter, a systematic approach will be adopted to answer this question of the relationship between organised crime and environmental change, breaking the findings down into four categories of, Type, Method, Location, and Consequence. In the thesis, I examine how each of these shapes the relationship between organised crime and environmental change in the Amazon.Show less
The acknowledgement of climate change as a contemporary existential threat to humankind has been prompting scholarly debate on how it might influence the future of nation-states, nationalism, and...Show moreThe acknowledgement of climate change as a contemporary existential threat to humankind has been prompting scholarly debate on how it might influence the future of nation-states, nationalism, and their makings. This theoretical discussion has notably included the question of whether appealing to the emotions of nationalism could make national communities willing to make the effort and sacrifice needed to tackle climate change. It remains to be questioned, however, what are the implications of resorting to the affective blueprint provided by nationalism in the era of climate change in both scholarship and policymaking. By performing Qualitative Content Analysis and Emotional Discourse Analysis, this work aims to address this question by empirically mapping the narratives and emotions of the nationalist environmental rhetoric of President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration in Brazil, one that portrays climate change as a threat to the nation-state’s identity and sovereignty and yet explicitly advances climate denialism. The empirical results indicate three core problems with the emotions of nationalism in the era of climate change as they entail five distinct types of exclusions. It is hoped that this research can provide evidence of what the implications of resorting to nationalism may be as far-right nativist populism makes its way into global politics. Importantly, it also seeks to dialogue with attempts at creating typologies of national discourses engaging with climate change and with methodological efforts to systematically incorporate emotions as a promising level of analysis in International Relations research.Show less
This paper investigates the mechanisms behind the relationship between economic inequality and environmental degradation in Brazil. The country experienced a significant reduction in inequality and...Show moreThis paper investigates the mechanisms behind the relationship between economic inequality and environmental degradation in Brazil. The country experienced a significant reduction in inequality and poverty since 1980, which resulted in higher levels of household income and, consequently, consumption. Research of available data suggests that for Brazil, a decrease in inequality and poverty resulted in an increase of consumption of, among other things, beef products. While this most likely led to increased deforestation in the beginning of the 2000s to meet the demand, due to environmental regulations, agreements, and policies, deforestation rates declined between 2004 and 2012. These rates started to increase again after 2012, the year in which the Forest Code was revised and regulations concerning deforestation were relaxed, implying the power of government interventions. While deforestation rates can be decoupled from beef product consumption, CO2 emissions have steadily increased over the studied time frame, also as a consequence of the expansion of the agricultural sector. Biodiversity loss has remained neutral thus far, and Brazil is still considered the world’s most biodiverse country. However, the risk to losing biodiversity might increase in the future if deforestation rates continue to rise. Besides consumption patterns, an unequal power distribution in the country gives big business and rich elites the power to influence policies in their benefit, maintaining or exacerbating inequalities or environmentally damaging activities.Show less
This paper analyzes the impact of various policy subject on the Latin American electoral accountability. Knowing to which factors electoral accountability is prone in the reelection of Latin...Show moreThis paper analyzes the impact of various policy subject on the Latin American electoral accountability. Knowing to which factors electoral accountability is prone in the reelection of Latin American incumbents is relevant to the incumbents themselves at first. According to the democratic dividend theory, incumbents could increase their likelihood of securing its next term by providing certain policy merits to the population. Moreover, for scientific reasons, it could explain why some incumbents are reelected and others are not. Furthermore, it allows to better evaluate and analyze previous and upcoming elections in Latin America. First, a multi-level regression analysis is conducted concerning the effect of various factors on the incumbent’s reelection. Based on this research, GDP growth and corruption have significant effects on the reelection chances of incumbents. These results are applied to Brazil’s 2022 Presidential elections. The analysis is conducted with semi-structured interviews with experts in the field. This analysis highlights the importance of economic voting as well. Moreover, it mentions influential factors, such as healthcare policy, evangelic voting, and international economic influences. Altogether, this analysis emphasizes the importance of economic voting and economic electoral accountability in Latin American countries. This allows researchers to further analyze the Latin American elections through a better scope.Show less
This thesis researches the different effects that Chinese FDI has on the economy of Brazil as well as on Sino-Brazilian international relations. In particular, it takes the case study of Brazilian...Show moreThis thesis researches the different effects that Chinese FDI has on the economy of Brazil as well as on Sino-Brazilian international relations. In particular, it takes the case study of Brazilian oil company Petrobras and its cooperations with Chinese oil company Sinopec. The main argument provided in the thesis is that although FDI had an impact in the development of Sino-Brazilian economic relations, other factors, such as patterns of trade, played a larger role here.Show less
