Wildfire

Ep. 6: Martyrdom

After Chico’s death, he became a martyr for the rainforest, and his work continued with significant success. But where is Chico’s name today? And why is it important that we remember his work? Sources: * Complicity in Destruction III. Amazon Watch. (n.d.). https://amazonwatch.org/news/2020/1027-complicity-in-destruction-iii. * Guardian News and Media. (2019, November 2). Brazilian 'forest guardian' killed by illegal loggers in ambush. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/02/brazilian-forest-guardian-killed-by-illegal-loggers-in-ambush. * Revkin, Andrew. The Burning Season: the Murder of Chico Mendes and the Fight for the Amazon Rain Forest. Island Press, 2004. * Hecht, Susanna, and Alexander Cockburn. The Fate of the Forest: Developers, Destroyers, and Defenders of the Amazon. University of Chicago Press, 2010. * Chris Mooney, B. D. (2019, December 22). Top scientists warn of an Amazon 'tipping point'. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/top-scientists-warn-of-an-amazon-tippingpoint/2019/12/20/9c9be954-233e-11ea-bed5-880264cc91a9_story.html. * Brasil, V. (n.d.). Chico Mendes House: Visit Brasil. Visit Brasil - Site oficial de turismo do Brasil. https://www.visitbrasil.com/attractions/chico-mendes-house.html. * Fabricius, K. E., Neill, C., Van Ooijen, E., Smith, J. N., & Tilbrook, B. (2020). Progressive seawater acidification on the Great Barrier Reef continental shelf. Scientific Reports, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-75293-1 * Maisonnave, F. (2020, October 23). The second death of Chico Mendes. Climate Home News. https://www.climatechangenews.com/2020/03/06/second-death-chico-mendes/. * Shoumatoff, Alex. “Murder in the Rainforest.” Vanity Fair, 1989. * Rodrigues, Gomercindo, et al. Walking the Forest with Chico Mendes: Struggle for Justice in the Amazon. University of Texas Press, 2007. * Mendes, Chico, et al. Fight for the Forest: Chico Mendes in his Own Words. Latin America Bureau (Research and Action) Ltd, 1989. * Chico Mendes: Voice of the Amazon, a documentary about rainforest martyr Chico Mendes. (n.d.). https://www.mirandaproductions.com/voice/reviews.htm. * The Amazon: A Global Treasure. Amazon Watch. (n.d.). https://amazonwatch.org/about. * Guajajara, S. (2020, October 2). Can Our Culture Survive Climate Change? The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/02/opinion/amazon-indigenous-people-brazil.html.

Ep. 5: The International Stage

Chico takes his message to the national and international stages, where he finds both support and increased threat of violence. Jim and Graham take a look at the larger drivers of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. It ends at the beginning, with Chico’s murder. Sources: * Revkin, Andrew. The Burning Season: the Murder of Chico Mendes and the Fight for the Amazon Rain Forest. Island Press, 2004. * Rodrigues, Gomercindo, et al. Walking the Forest with Chico Mendes: Struggle for Justice in the Amazon. University of Texas Press, 2007. * Mendes, Chico, et al. Fight for the Forest: Chico Mendes in his Own Words. Latin America Bu * Shoumatoff, Alex. “Murder in the Rainforest.” Vanity Fair, 1989. * Mendes, Francisco. “Antihero.” Spin, September 1989, page 76-78. * Surui, Almir Narayamoga, et al. Save the Planet: An Amazonian Tribal Leader Fights for His People, The Rainforest, and the Earth. Editions Albin Michel, 2015. * Hecht, Susanna, and Alexander Cockburn. The Fate of the Forest: Developers, Destroyers, and Defenders of the Amazon. University of Chicago Press, 2010.

Ep. 4: The Indigenous Perspective

Chico reaches out to the Indigenous communities to help his cause in the forest, a resource on which they both rely. Similarly, Graham and JIm contact the Surui tribe, who have their own innovative way to combat deforestation. In the end, Chico sees that he must take his message to the international stage — but he has doubts. Sources: * Revkin, Andrew. The Burning Season: the Murder of Chico Mendes and the Fight for the Amazon Rain Forest. Island Press, 2004. * Rodrigues, Gomercindo, et al. Walking the Forest with Chico Mendes: Struggle for Justice in the Amazon. University of Texas Press, 2007. * Mendes, Chico, et al. Fight for the Forest: Chico Mendes in his Own Words. Latin America Bu * Shoumatoff, Alex. “Murder in the Rainforest.” Vanity Fair, 1989. * Mendes, Francisco. “Antihero.” Spin, September 1989, page 76-78. * Surui, Almir Narayamoga, et al. Save the Planet: An Amazonian Tribal Leader Fights for His People, The Rainforest, and the Earth. Editions Albin Michel, 2015. * Mann, C. C. (2019). 1491: New revelations of the Americas before Columbus. Alfred A. Knopf. * Hecht, Susanna, and Alexander Cockburn. The Fate of the Forest: Developers, Destroyers, and Defenders of the Amazon. University of Chicago Press, 2010. https://www.fs.fed.us/forestmanagement/aboutus/index.shtml

Ep.3: Good Guys and Bad Guys

Chico begins organizing against deforestation and starts a war with the local ranching community. The hosts see first hand what the burning looks like on the ground and learn more about the “good guys” and “bad guys” in the complex conflict between rubber tappers and ranchers, as well as the individuals and groups opposed to Chico before his murder. Finally, Chico is put into a leadership role in 1980. Sources: * Hecht, Susanna, and Alexander Cockburn. The Fate of the Forest: Developers, Destroyers, and Defenders of the Amazon. University of Chicago Press, 2010. * Revkin, Andrew. The Burning Season: the Murder of Chico Mendes and the Fight for the Amazon Rain Forest. Island Press, 2004. * Rodrigues, Gomercindo, et al. Walking the Forest with Chico Mendes: Struggle for Justice in the Amazon. University of Texas Press, 2007. * Mendes, Chico, et al. Fight for the Forest: Chico Mendes in his Own Words. Latin America Bureau (Research and Action) Ltd, 1989. * Mann, Charles C. 1491 (Second Edition): New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus. 2nd ed., Random House LLC, 2005. * Shoumatoff, Alex. “Murder in the Rainforest.” Vanity Fair, 1989. * Mendes, Francisco. “Antihero.” Spin, September 1989, page 76-78. * Brown, Foster. “Morte Entre Muitas.” Jornal A Gazeta, February 2020.

Ep. 2: The Man and the Forest

In the second episode, hosts Graham and Jim explore the origin story of Chico Mendes. They explore the past of the rubber trade in the Amazon, the rubber tappers' relationship with the forest, and their plight. More about the show: In the second season of Wildfire, we’re shifting our perspective from fires in the forests of the American west to those taking place in the Amazon rainforest alongside a story of violence and heroism. On December 22nd 1988 in the town of Xapuri, Brazil a man named Chico Mendes was shot and killed at his home. He was killed for trying to protect the rainforest from the fires that were burning at an increasing rate; fires that were turning one of the most complex ecosystems in the world into cow pastures. In this season of Wildfire, hosts Jim Aikman and Graham Zimmerman look into the story of Chico Mendes—who he was, what he was fighting for, and how his legacy lives on. It's a story filled with intrigue and violence but also hope, both for the Amazon and for humankind. This 6-part series is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Episode sources: * Hecht, Susanna, and Alexander Cockburn. The Fate of the Forest: Developers, Destroyers, and Defenders of the Amazon. University of Chicago Press, 2010. * Revkin, Andrew. The Burning Season: the Murder of Chico Mendes and the Fight for the Amazon Rain Forest. Island Press, 2004. * Rodrigues, Gomercindo, et al. Walking the Forest with Chico Mendes: Struggle for Justice in the Amazon. University of Texas Press, 2007. * Mendes, Chico, et al. Fight for the Forest: Chico Mendes in his Own Words. Latin America Bureau (Research and Action) Ltd, 1989. * Mann, Charles C. 1491 (Second Edition): New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus. 2nd ed., Random House LLC, 2005. * Shoumatoff, Alex. “Murder in the Rainforest.” Vanity Fair, 1989. * “Making a Difference : Chico Mendes . . .” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 1989, www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-01-22-op-1186-story.html. * Mendes, Francisco. “Antihero.” Spin, September 1989, page 76-78.