On this week’s episode of The Index podcast by the Global Initiative, Flávia do Amaral Vieira, senior researcher from the Plataforma CIPÓ, was invited to discuss the escalating environmental crimes in South America. Alongside Bram Ebus, a criminologist, investigative journalist, and consultant for the International Crisis Group, and host Thin Lei Win, she highlighted how this problem affects the entire world, with a particular focus on the region.
According to the participants, the illegal extraction of non-renewable resources such as gold, timber, and rare minerals has become a highly profitable criminal activity. South America, with its wealth of natural resources, has the highest rate of such offenses.
Organized crime groups linked to the drug trade have become involved in the illegal market associated with environmental crimes, exacerbating an already dire situation.
