In a ceremony held yesterday, January 22, at the Palácio dos Bandeirantes, Governor Tarcísio de Freitas announced the installation of the State Council for Climate Change (CEMC), which will follow and monitor the implementation of the state’s strategy for preventing and dealing with extreme weather events.
The priority is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and make São Paulo’s cities more resilient to disasters caused by major floods, landslides, forest fires, and prolonged drought. The Chief of Staff and the Environment, Infrastructure, and Logistics departments lead the initiative.
“Regarding the mitigation of the effects of climate change and climate adaptation, we already have a series of actions underway, but now we’re also going to move forward on the issue of governance, which is very important. I am sure we are going to take important steps on the issue of sustainability to take advantage of the opportunities that are out there,” said the governor.
The Council is consultative and has 18 members, divided between the state government, municipalities, and civil society. Representing civil society, socio-environmental organizations working in the area of climate change, São Paulo public universities, and the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (Fiesp) were invited.
Four USP researchers have been appointed to the Council. Carlos Eduardo Pellegrino Cerri, a professor at the School of Agriculture “Luiz de Queiroz” (Esalq), is the representative of the State Secretariat for Science, Technology, and Innovation. Paulo Antônio de Almeida Sinisgalli, a professor at the Institute of Energy and Environment (IEE), is his deputy. Representatives from São Paulo state universities include Edmilson Dias de Freitas, a professor at the Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences (IAG), and Tadeu Fabrício Malheiros, a professor at the Faculty of Public Health (FSP).
The ceremony was attended by state secretaries Natália Resende (Environment, Infrastructure, and Logistics); Military Police Officer Colonel Henguel Ricardo Pereira (Military Staff and Civil Defense); Arthur Lima (Office of the Chief of Staff); Eleuses Paiva (Health); Vahan Agopyan (Science, Technology, and Innovation) and Colonel Helena (Sports); as well as the state attorney general, Inês Coimbra; the chairman of the Board of Directors of Empresa Metropolitana de Águas e Energia (Emae), Nelson Tanure; economist Marcos Troyjo, a student at Oxford University (UK); the chairman of São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), Marco Antonio Zago; and the President of USP, Carlos Gilberto Carlotti Junior.