Nathalie Kelley Instagram – (credit: @sumaumajournalism ) When @lulaoficial was voted in, many of us had high hopes for his presidency. Anyone would be better than Bolsonaro – we told ourselves. We looked passed Lula’s past sins against indigenous people and the environment like the Belo Monte Dam – hoping that he had heeded science’s warning that Brazil’s Amazon rainforest and other critical ecosystems were under threat and would not survive an increase in global temperatures… and at first it seemed he had. He reduced deforestation, appointed indigenous leaders, he only demarcated 6 territories – but it was a start. Until this. Lulas’s cynical decision to join OPEC and auction off hundreds of oil blocks the day COP ended is a slap in the face to anyone who believed he was serious about preserving Brazil’s critical ecosystems and halting rising temperatures . The pristine coral reefs and other places Lula has just sold to multinational oil companies will make Brazil the 4th biggest exporter of oil in the world! This is absurd and frankly disgusting from a man who ran on climate leadership. @lulaoficial looks like a coward next to Colombia’s @gustavopetrourrego who made his country the first in Latin America to sign the @fossilfueltreaty . Lula has but almost lost all credibility with those fighting to keep our waters clean, our waters in tact and biodiversity thriving. We must stay vigilant and critical even of the people we once supported. It remains to be seen if there are any leaders in Brazil who have the ecological literacy and courage to lead this rich, diverse region into a new, truly abundant future, one that does not rely on fossil fuel extraction in some of the most biodiverse places in the world. Follow @sumaumajournalism @sumaumajornalismo for more information in English and Portuguese