Hand in hand with Brazil’s new president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the great Indigenous leader Raoni Metuktire walked up the ramp at Lula’s swearing-in ceremony on January 1, 2023.

Witnessing this memorable day brought profound joy to many Brazilians. Mixed feelings of relief, hope, and a sense of reparative justice took over Brasília, the country's capital. For the first time, a government has put Indigenous peoples at the center, recognizing their ancestral right to decide over their lives and territories.

Through this new government, our work may be more impactful. It is going to change the possibilities and strategies available to us and this movement to avert the Amazon tipping point. We have renewed faith that over Lula’s term, we will be able to slow down the pace of Amazon destruction with so many allies in power.

The work will continue to be challenging, and we will need to maintain the pressure and support Indigenous communities to hold Lula accountable for making good faith efforts on his promises. The Brazilian congress remains a difficult target for us, filled with agribusiness lobbyists and those more focused on profit from the Amazon than the value of its protection.

Yet, our movement has proven powerful, and we will continue celebrating and amplifying the calls from the grassroots up. So far, we are excited about the possibilities, as Lula has taken swift action for the climate and the Amazon!