Manaus

By Gabriel Elizondo in Americas on December 17th, 2009
Mauro.jpg 
 
At its heart, the story of the Brazilian Amazon is about the 21 million people who in some way or another call it home. Everyday from December 7 through 18 - coinciding with the Copenhagen climate change summit – I am introducing you to a new person who lives in the Brazilian Amazon and whom I came across during my most recent reporting trip to the area. This is the eleventh of twelve installments of ‘Faces of the Amazon.’ To read the introductory blog post about this project, click here.
 
Name: Mauro Cristo
 
Age: 36
 
By Gabriel Elizondo in Americas on December 13th, 2009

MiltonJorge.jpg 

At its heart, the story of the Brazilian Amazon is about the 21 million people who in some way or another call it home. Everyday from December 7 until 18 - coinciding with the Copenhagen climate change summit – I will introduce you to a new person who lives in the Brazilian Amazon and whom I came across during my most recent reporting trip to the area. This is the seventh installment of ‘Faces of the Amazon.’ To read the introductory blog post about this project, click here.

By Gabriel Elizondo in Americas on December 10th, 2009

At its heart, the story of the Brazilian Amazon is about the 21 million people who in some way or another call it home. Everyday from December 7 through 18 - coinciding with the Copenhagen climate change summit – I am introducing you to a new person who lives in the Brazilian Amazon and whom I came across during my most recent reporting trip to the area. This is the fourth of twelve installments of ‘Faces of the Amazon.’ To read the introductory blog post about this project, click here.

DanielMoreno.JPG

Name: Daniel Moreno

By Gabriel Elizondo in Americas on December 8th, 2009

At its heart, the story of the Brazilian Amazon is about the 21 million people who in some way or another call it home. Everyday from December 7 through 18 - coinciding with the Copenhagen climate change summit – I'll introduce you to a new person who lives in the Brazilian Amazon and whom I came across during my most recent reporting trip to the area. This is the second installment of ‘Faces of the Amazon.’ To read the introductory blog post about this project, click here.

By Gabriel Elizondo in Americas on December 5th, 2009
Photo by Gabriel Elizondo/Al Jazeera
MANAUS, Brazil - This might come as a shock, but I am going to say it anyway: The story of the Brazilian Amazon is not one of giant trees, rainforests, rivers, exotic reptiles, carbon emissions, or deforestation.
 
The story of the Amazon in Brazil is one of people.
 
Often lost in glossy picture books about the Amazon, is the fact that 21 million people in Brazil alone live in the Amazon territory. To be exact 20,998,731 according to the latest census.
 
They live in big cities like Manaus (population 1.7 million) and Belem (population 1.4 million). They live in small, isolated riverbank villages made up of a few people with no cell phone service. Places like Boa Frente (population 94). They are ranchers, indigenous people, shop owners, drivers, cooks, fishermen, bankers and everything in between.
 
By Gabriel Elizondo in Americas on December 2nd, 2009
Photo from AFP
I just got back to Manaus after a couple days reporting from the interior of Amazonas state for a story that will air next week.
 
The flight from the interior of the Amazon back to Manaus was on 5 person Cessna-type plane. The pilot flew very low, right over the top of the endless expanse of some of the thickest parts of the Amazon rainforest. I have flown over the Amazon many times. But this flight was memorable because of how low we were, getting a good look at the forest below. It was a unique perspective you would never get from a commercial flight.
 
The scene below was beautiful…and very dreadful at the same time.
 
The splendor was peering out the window of the plane at the top of the forest canopy passing below like an endless greenish carpet. That sight never gets old.
 
Tags: Amazon, Manaus
By Gabriel Elizondo in Americas on November 28th, 2009
Photo by AFP
It was billed as a summit of presidents of Amazon countries. But most of the presidents didn’t bother to show up, making the ‘summit of presidents’ in Manaus one with few actual presidents in attendance.
 
About half of the mysterious place called "the Amazon" is in Brazil. The other half is divided between 8 other countries - Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana.
 
So Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Brazil's president, organised Thursday's one-day summit of Amazon countries as a chance for them to come together a forge a common agenda ahead of the all important Copenhagen climate change summit starting on December 7 - which is being billed as the biggest climate change meeting in generations.

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