Ambassador André Driessen (left) and interviewer Hanno N. Ponder (right)
HANNO NICOLAAS PONDER FROM
Ambassador André Driessen:
"Brazil is internationally responsible for conservation Amazon." Last year I had the opportunity to meet the new Dutch Ambassador André Driessen (19790025) at a reception in the residence of Roland Martin, the Dutch Consul General in Rio de Janeiro. André started his BBA studies at Nyenrode in 1979, while I graduated in that year. We missed each other at the time, but we soon exchanged memories of Nyenrode and Dr. E.B.J. Postma. As a result of this contact, the editors asked me to interview André on the topic of climate and energy in Brazil, my new home country. The interview took place on January 25, 2022. It turned out that our man in Rio was well prepared for his mission. BY HANNO NICOLAAS PONDER - PHOTOS HNP EN NL. AMBASSADE
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P: Brazil seems to be a "mixed bag" when it comes to environmental policy. For example, the country is the world's largest producer of bioenergy (ethanol, biodiesel and biogas), on the other hand, the Amazon Rainforest is continuously being reduced. As a Dutch diplomat, did André receive a climate agenda from The Hague?
AD: "Yes, in my diplomatic mission, climate and sustainability are important issues. We cannot push Brazil aside because we disagree with certain environmental issues. The country is a major player in ecosystems and part of both the problem and the solutions. It's a little harder to work these days with the
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mindset of the current Bolsonaro administration, but even in the days of previous presidents Lula and Dilma, these issues were sensitive. If you compare today's deforestation with the levels of 20 to 25 years ago, it is much lower. But in recent years, unfortunately, the figures have started to rise sharply again. In order to cooperate, we now often focus on regional players, at the state and municipal level, who do see the benefit of international cooperation. And the interest in this is so great that we have a choice of all kinds of projects." HNP: After the turn of the century, things seemed to be moving in the right direction for the conservation of the rainforest, half of which is in Brazil. However, since 2018 when Bolsonaro took office, logging has only increased. Does Driessen see this as an international problem?
AD: "The Amazon is ours, according to Brazilians, and the area has a wealth of resources that are not being exploited now and can contribute to the development of the local population. On the other hand, the Amazon is one of the lungs of the world, so it's a discussion you do have to have with Brazil. Brazil, we believe, has a global responsibility to manage and conserve the Amazon. It's a big area of tension. In part, Brazil has to tackle and solve the problem itself, in part we can help, bilaterally, with Europe and through international organizations, with governments and with all kinds of private parties." HNP: The Bolsonaro government recently cut the budget for environmental monitoring by 24%, while just before that it promised, during an Internet conference of US states (at the initiative of President Joe Biden), to totally eliminate illegal logging of the rainforest by 2030. How does that work diplomatically, did André get permission from The Hague to protest against this?
