Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has gone out of his way to show that he is putting the climate agenda and preservation of the Amazon rainforest at the center of his presidency. But there are limitations to his ability to achieve his climate ambitions, not to mention some incoherencies within his government’s priorities.
Chileans will vote Sunday to determine whether to approve a new draft constitution, the culmination of a process that began with spontaneous protests in October 2019. The most recent polling shows the “No” camp with a significant but narrowing lead. But whether or not the constitution passes, Chile is in for a period of uncertainty.
Bolivia officially became the Plurinational State of Bolivia in 2009, when a newly ratified constitution formally recognized the country’s cultural diversity. But the country’s experience since then shows how radical ideas can end up diluted into policies that, while significant, fall short of fundamental change.