Brazil has a lot of weekend vacation spots on the beach that they promote as green or ecological. They are visited by mostly upper middle class Brazilians, who do not seem much different from Americans in being very focused on their own self-indulgence and not so interested in the nature and other people around them.
One of the most publicized best known conservation projects, the Tamar sea turtle recovery project with a visitor center at Praia do Forte, near Salvador, is heavily sponsored by Petrobras, the Brazilian oil company. The Petrobras logo is plastered on most of the signs and literature about the project. This is clearly a PR effort by the company to discourage criticism of the destructive impacts of offshore oil drilling on coastal ecosystems, including sea turtles.
The project (and Petrobras) claims that sea turtle populations are increasing, so maybe the efforts at protecting turtle nests are working. Still this seems a lot like a big tobacco company announcing that due to a new medical treatment, the lung cancer death rate is decreasing. So no need to worry, right?
At Praia do Forte, the main promenade is lined with hundreds of shops, including some of the same kinds of retail stores you would see in a big shopping mall. While it is advertised as eco-friendly beach town, a German traveler I met at the hostel called it a “brainwashed” place.
In the Chapada Diamantina, I stayed in a place called the “Pousada Ecologica,” with air conditioners in each room (not really necessary given the cool nights in that location), and restaurant menu with practically no options without meat. The many “ecotours” sold by local agencies burn a lot of fossil fuel per person in vans driving many hours a day between scenic points of interest. Like everywhere else, there is a lot of plastic waste and little evidence of recycling.