Research in Brazil finds that collaborative efforts between dedicated individuals helps to accelerate change.

Nearly half of Brazil’s energy-related greenhouse gas emissions come from the transportation sector, making it a focal point for research and policy intervention.

Recent analysis of the legislative process of the country’s National Biofuel Policy (RenovaBio) by SNAPFI researchers has found that:

• Multiple people with complementary skills who are willing to invest their resources and stay involved throughout all the steps of a political process can make policies move faster from creation to approval to implementation.
• The abilities and competences of engaged policy “entrepreneurs” throughout the entire political process are key to make a proposal move forward in the steps of creating, approving and carrying out the policy.
• Presenting one policy as a solution to multiple problems can make its legislative process go faster because many people come together to support it. However, if the policy priorities are unclear, it will be vulnerable to criticism after implementation.
• Linking a policy to climate change commitments can increase its visibility and make it harder to oppose.
• Adopting a market-based approach — instead of relying solely on state intervention — contributes to policy acceptance, whilst the implementation of robust best practices can contribute to its effectiveness.
• International climate finance (ICF) can help countries develop and implement climate-aligned domestic policies. Future research could find possible entry points for ICF to create an enabling environment and help certain issues and climate-related solutions to rise in the governmental agenda.