Sierra Club Canada Foundation stands firmly with indigenous communities and the people of Brazil and neighbouring Amazonian nations.

At a time when any Canadian government should be leading by example to prevent irreversible climate catastrophe, Canada is negotiating the Canada-Mercosur Free Trade Agreement with Brazil.

Brazil’s President Bolsonaro is encouraging lawlessness, illegal deforestation, and with reckless rhetoric and gutting of environmental protections, he is pushing the lungs of the earth closer to the brink.

The Amazon rainforest is an ecological gift to the world. It is irreplaceable. Its wanton destruction will leave every person of the world at risk.

Sierra Club Canada Foundation will continue its work to demand protections for ecologically critical areas as part of the global action to address the climate crisis, and use its reach to engage Canadians to take action and demand an unequivocal response from the Canadian government that will see:

• an immediate halt to all trade talks with Brazil until the Bolsonaro government issues a reversal of their positions and re-instates environmental protections, including a commitment to respect the rights of indigenous people

• the strongest public condemnation of President Bolsonaro's actions, and include calls for immediate protection of forests and an end to illegal deforestation.