Eliana Cerdeira

Brazilian environmental scientist who pioneered Amazon rainforest conservation and climate policy

Eliana Cerdeira (1945-2021) was a visionary Brazilian scientist whose work transformed Amazon conservation and global climate policy. Trained in physics and ecology, she became a leading voice in balancing economic development with environmental preservation. Her 1980s research on deforestation patterns revealed alarming rates of forest loss, prompting Brazil's first environmental protection laws.

Cerdeira co-founded the Amazon Environmental Research Institute (IPAM) in 1993, creating innovative programs like community-based forest management. Her Amazon Deforestation: Drivers and Alternatives (2014) became a key text for policymakers worldwide. She pioneered the REDD+ framework now used in UN climate agreements.

Her advocacy led to Brazil's 2004 Forest Code reforms and inspired similar legislation in Peru and Colombia. Cerdeira's work with the World Resources Institute helped integrate climate science into economic planning. Despite her technical focus, she emphasized grassroots engagement, training thousands of Amazonian communities in sustainable practices through programs like WWF-Brazil.

Though less publicly recognized than activists like Chico Mendes, Cerdeira's scientific rigor and policy influence made her a quiet architect of modern environmental governance. Her legacy endures through IPAM's ongoing research and the Copernicus Climate Change Service's data systems she helped design.