On Independence Day, Brasil highlights COP30 and presents the Curupira mascot
The climate conference, to be hosted in Brasil, was the theme of the second part of the celebration; President Lula emphasized the reduction of deforestation in the Amazônia
By Laura Marques / COP30
The civic-military parade on September 7, celebrating Brasil’s Independence Day in Brasilia, highlighted the upcoming COP30 in the country, with the second part of the event dedicated to the UN’s largest global gathering for climate change discussions and negotiations. For the first time, the event’s mascot, Curupira, made a public appearance before authorities from the three Branches of Government and the population, including the President of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The character is considered the “guardian of the forests and animals” and is part of the Conference’s visual identity in Brasil.
On Saturday, September 6, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva delivered his official Independence Day address, stressing the Brazilian government’s efforts to protect the nation’s natural resources. “We care for our environment like no one else. We have halved deforestation in the Amazônia, which will host COP30, the world’s largest climate conference, in November,” he added.
At the opening of the parade’s second part, a banner with the words “Global Mutirão against climate change” announced Brasil’s call for worldwide unity. The slogan is an invitation from the COP30 Presidency for the public to understand climate change and its impacts, engage in the debate, and collectively seek solutions to the climate crisis. The topic was highlighted in the first letter from COP30 President, Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago.
Curupira paraded alongside staff and forest firefighters from the National Center for Prevention and Combat of Forest Fires(Centro Nacional de Prevenção e Combate aos Incêndios Florestais/Prevfogo), a division of the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis/Ibama), and the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade/ICMBio). “Fifty professionals represent how the Brazilian government has worked to preserve nature and also to protect it during climate emergencies,” explained Naiara Lemos, the General Coordinator of Institutional Communication for the Social Communication Secretariat (Secretaria de Comunicação Social da Presidência da República/SECOM/PR).
The SECOM/PR representative highlighted Prevfogo’s work in favor of preservation, which includes environmental education in schools beyond firefighting, and noted that Brasil recorded the lowest number of wildfires in a single August since monitoring began in 1998. She also mentioned the Federal Government’s approval of BRL 1.5 billion in projects through the Amazônia Fund.
The parade also featured Prevfogo’s mascot, Labareda, a giant anteater, and 196 young people carrying tree seedlings to be planted. These seedlings represented the countries that will participate in COP30 and symbolized life, hope, and the collective commitment to care for the planet.
Education
Representing the Federal District’s school system, students paraded in costumes and choreographies that celebrated Brasil’s natural riches and made reference to COP30. Students from two schools, Escola Classe Sítio das Araucárias and Centro de Ensino Médio Escola Industrial in Taguatinga, paid tribute to Brasil’s forest workers.
Meanwhile, students from Centro Educacional 02 in Riacho Fundo I celebrated the beauty of Brasil’s forests and rivers. At the same time, the Centro de Ensino Fundamental 213 in Santa Maria praised Brazilian biodiversity, while the Centro Fundamental 20 in Ceilândia highlighted the country’s six biomes: The Amazônia, the Cerrado, the Atlantic Forest, the Caatinga, the Pantanal and the Pampa.