The strategic goal of the Climate and Environmental Justice program is to reduce the drivers of illegal deforestation and related environmental crimes threatening the Brazilian Amazon forest, and to promote climate justice in Brazil and elsewhere in the Global South by advancing effective and inclusive governance and public policies.

The program has two specific goals:

1. CIPÓ promotes workable responses to climate change, especially with respect to adaptation. Locally, CIPÓ works with local communities, civil society organizations, private sector actors and government at different levels to generate innovative methodologies for assessing risks, address the impacts of climate change and foster inclusive governance. CIPÓ also maps and tracks climate migration trends in Latin America and the Caribbean and promotes preventive action and effective responses.

2. CIPÓ combines research, advocacy and network-building to analyze the drivers, dynamics and impacts of major environmental crimes in the Amazon and Cerrado, including illegal deforestation, forest fires caused by human action, land grabbing, illegal logging, and illegal mining. CIPÓ also analyzes these crimes’ connection to corruption, money laundering and violent crimes and tracks their impacts. Internationally, CIPÓ engages with relevant stakeholders to enhance traceability and clean up commodity chains, as well as develop the Just Transition agenda in Brazil.