Effects of Climate Change and Its Relation to Disinformation Are the Focus of Debate at the Council

The 9th cycle of the Media and Democracy Council focused on the theme “Disinformation and Climate Change” and featured the workshop *“Climate Change and Disinformation: Context and Strategies”* and the plenary session *“Disinformation Creates New Fears.”* The guests for these events were Victor Terra, an analyst at Lupa; Vilso Santi, professor and coordinator of Amazoon — Observatório Cultural da Amazônia e do Caribe; and journalist Thais Lazzeri, a member of the Global Coalition Against Climate Disinformation.

According to the National Center for Natural Disasters, 2023 set a record for hydrological and geo-hydrological disasters in Brazil, with 1,161 events. Victor began his remarks at the plenary session by discussing the rise in extreme climate events. Despite such evidence, he noted that climate denial persists among the population.

On YouTube, 70% of climate denial content published in 2023 used fact distortion to question science, spreading doubts and uncertainties about global warming. Victor highlighted Lupa's actions to combat these challenges through media education, employing techniques such as “debunking,” an informational “antibiotic” for immediate and short-term containment. In the educational field, they use “pre-debunking,” which has a long-term effect, promoting critical thinking about science and its processes.

During the workshop, Professor Vilso Santi reflected on the state of informational, climatic, and environmental emergencies from the perspective of the Amazon region. He presented the timeline of the Observatório Cultural da Amazônia, established in 2013, using the metaphor of a tree. The tree's canopy represents the visible surface of disinformation, where fact-checking practices operate. As the canopy addresses only the leaves and branches—symbolizing fake news and rumors—it touches only the surface of the problem. To truly understand and combat disinformation, it is necessary to examine the roots, which represent the systematic causes and origins of disinformation.

Finally, in the plenary session with Thais Lazzeri, the journalist and activist shared her experience at COP 29 in Baku, Azerbaijan. Thais was one of the coordinators of a letter produced by 51 international organizations and 42 climate experts, calling for urgent action against climate disinformation. The letter urged governments and platforms to adopt a universal, clear, and consistent definition of climate disinformation, hold social media companies, ad tech providers, and publishers accountable, and pressure these actors to implement concrete measures. These measures include increasing transparency, preventing the monetization of disinformation, and addressing the impact of emerging technologies such as AI.