Brazil's climate is changing, the country is vulnerable, and the changes underway demand every effort to avoid the worst, said the Secretary of Research and Development Policies and Programs at the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI), Carlos Nobre. He was taking part in the launch of the first part of the Brazilian Panel on Climate Change (PBMC) in the Coppe / UFRJ auditorium, Parque dos Atletas, during Rio+20, on Thursday (June 21).

Noble stressed the importance of the report when he highlighted forecasts on climate change over the past years, and especially the impacts of these changes in the present and in the future, in every sector of Brazilian life. The document, which contains information organized for the first time by biomes, reveals that the most worrying forecasts about the end of the century concern the Amazon and Caatinga (savanna) region, given rising temperatures and a fall in regional rainfall. Read on.

"The panel wants to be at the cutting edge of science and suggesting technological solutions, both as regards the adaptation of Brazilian society, of economic activities, and environmental protection to climate change, which is already inevitable, as well as at the forefront of the concept of future risk and greenhouse gas reduction," he explained.

The contribution made by science

For the Nobre, previous reports made stronger mention of the role of science in Brazil. He said the sector did not appear in the document as a fundamental contributor to sustainable development and he emphasized that it is important to acknowledge climate change, which is already beyond dispute.

"Our role is to highlight the vital role that science and technology play. Without them we will not achieve sustainability," he said, stressing ow important it is that this concern run through public policy.

"Temperatures are rising, the sea level is rising along the Brazilian coastline, and there is a string of scientific evidence that extreme phenomena have become more frequent and intense," he warned. "It is hard to state that this is a definitive change, but that is the point of this report. We must make every effort to ensure that these changes do not turn into the most worrying scenario," he added.

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                                                                                                                  Text: Juliana d'Arede - Press Office, MCTI