Latin America

Moacir Cordeiro, who works in a local cattle farm, looks on after digging grooves with a tractor in an attempt to stave off fires in the Alvorada da Amazonia region in Novo Progresso, Para state, Brazil, on Sunday.

World News

G-7 Leaders Pledge Money To Help Amazon Nations Fight Rainforest Blazes, Macron Says

10:44am August 26, 2019

by Scott Neuman

As the summit in France wrapped up, Brazil's far-right president tweeted that the international alliance treats his country "as if we were a colony or no man's land."

World News

U.S. Focused On Migration As Guatemala's President Kills Anti-Corruption Effort

5:09pm August 25, 2019

by Carrie Kahn

Guatemala's president ended the mandate of a U.N.-backed anti-corruption commission.The Trump administration hasn't intervened because it's focused on sealing a migration accord.

In Tigers Are Not Afraid, 11-year-old Estrella (Paola Lara) meets a gang of orphans led by a boy in a tiger mask.

Arts

In 'Tigers Are Not Afraid,' A Dark Fantasy Amid Mexico's Drug War

8:06am August 25, 2019

by Leila Fadel

Director Issa López blends magical realism and horror with the current events of her native country in the story of young Estrella, who meets a street gang of fellow orphan children.

Amid Mixed Messaging, Brazil's Bolsonaro Sends Troops To Fight Amazon Fires

5:17pm August 24, 2019

by Philip Reeves

Under pressure in his country and abroad, Brazil's president is using military resources to fight fires in the Amazon and take action against those setting them.

Extinction Rebellion activists protest outside the Brazilian Embassy in London on Friday, calling on President Jair Bolsonaro to act to protect the Amazon rainforest. The European Union is throwing its weight behind French President Emmanuel Macron's call

World News

Brazilian President Bolsonaro To Send Army To Combat Amazon Rainforest Fires

8:15pm August 23, 2019

by Philip Reeves

Tens of thousands of fires have erupted in the Amazon so far this year — a huge spike over 2018 — and critics blame Bolsonaro's policies. He said Friday that protecting the rainforest is "our duty."

Brazilians Take To The Streets To Protest Deforestation Of The Amazon

5:19pm August 23, 2019

by Philip Reeves

Brazilians have taken to the streets in protest over destruction being done to the Amazon through wildfires and tree cutting. They say the new right-wing president is fueling the destruction.

What Satellite Imagery Can Tell Us About The Fires Burning In The Amazon

5:19pm August 23, 2019

NPR's Audie Cornish talks with Doug Morton of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center about what satellite imagery can tell us about the cause and extent of the fires in Brazil.

Smoke billows during a fire in an area of the Amazon rainforest near Humaita, Brazil, on Aug. 17.

PHOTOS: The Amazon Rainforest, Ablaze In Brazil

4:58pm August 23, 2019

by Suzette Lohmeyer

There have been 74,155 fires in Brazil so far this year, mostly in the Amazon, and about half of which have ignited in just the past month. Some world leaders are raising the alarm.

News Brief: Rainforest Fires, G-7 Summit, Iran's Economy

11:20am August 23, 2019

Wildfires are spreading in Brazil's Amazon rainforest. The G-7 summit opens Saturday in France. And Iranians answer this question: Who do you blame for Iran's economic troubles?

Queue Listen Now

Smoke billows from a fire in an area of the Amazon rainforest near Porto Velho, Brazil, earlier this week.

World News

Macron Urges G-7 Members To Put Amazon Fires At Top Of Agenda

9:28am August 23, 2019

by Scott Neuman

In a tweet, the French president called the 2,500 active fires in the Amazon an "international crisis" and urged fellow G-7 members to "discuss this emergency first order" at their upcoming summit.