Hello and welcome to more or less on the BBC World Service, where you're weekly guides

to the numbers in the news and in life. I'm John Bithry.

This week we're talking about the world's largest tropical rainforests, the Amazon. It's

one of the most bio-diverse places on the planet, home to an extraordinary range of plants

and animal species, tribal communities and of course the mighty Amazon River. But it's

well documented that the Amazon is under threat from loggers, miners looking for gold and other

minerals and the spread of agriculture.

Now though, environmentalists are feeling more optimistic than usual about the Amazon. That's

because the left-winger Lula De Silva has staged a stunning political comeback, winning

Brazil's presidential election.

Brazil is ready to return to its role as leader in the fight against climate change. We're

going to fight for zero deforestation in the Amazon.

Brazil and the world need a living Amazon. A living tree is worth more than a ton of

wood that's been destroyed illegally by people who are only thinking about easy profit at

the expense of the quality of life on Earth.

Lula is replacing President Giair Bolsonaro, whose record on protecting the Amazon was

poor. John Kerry, the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, was one of those delighted

by his victory.

Under the Bolsonaro government, regrettably, the level of deforestation increased in

the Amazon. It is at perilous high levels today. President Lula is committed. He's already

shown that commitment previously with a program that he had in place. But now, I hope we'll

be able to refine that program and move forward even more rapidly with the reforms that

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