Telosaes.it

“I do not have a political background, and neither do I aspire to pursue a political career. And that is why I was nominated in the first place: because I am a down-to-earth conservationist that could help promote applicable and realistic policies.”

Telos: In April 2020, with the world literally closing in on itself in the Covid emergency, something extraordinary happened in one of the largest African countries: you were appointed Minister of Culture, Environment and Tourism by the President of Angola, João Lourenço. However, the post only lasted a few months. What did you achieve in that period and why did you leave?

Adjany Costa: My nomination was a surprise even to me. I do not have a political background, and neither do I aspire to pursue a political career. And that is why I was nominated in the first place: because I am a down-to-earth conservationist that could help promote applicable and realistic policies instead of those that might become obsolete with time. And I took that as the primary mission of my appointment. The first step was to create an institution to start with.
The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Environment was a newly created Super-Ministry with no legal structure. The first few months were dedicated to creating "The Giant", progressing the competences of the 3 previous ministries to fit into the current national and global pressing issues in the three realms. What had to be left behind, what had to be emphasised and worked on, what had to be added to each of the previous ministries… and how to combine it all into one with aligned goals and interconnecting priorities. The second step was to assemble the right team for it, who had the knowledge, experience, motivation and innovative spirit to carry through each of these overloaded departments. With 46 dependent institutes (including museums, national parks and executive institutions), over 1,500 employees spread across all 18 provinces and a limited budget, the second task was key to producing robust outcomes. The third step was to create the necessary foundations to develop the established goals and priorities. Protocols, guidelines, strategies, schedules and task forces were designed to ensure that "The Giant" could move swiftly, assertively and robustly. Those were my tasks, and once I accomplished them, I was put in a different position to oversee in a more hands-on the ground, technical and practical way rather than the political execution that was required from then on.
I contributed to the advancement of climate dialogue with the first series of roundtables with civil society, private institutions and diplomatic corps to understand everyday worries, paths and objectives and combine efforts to potentialise human and financial investment. I also promoted the kick-off actions for establishing the first Marine Protected Area in Angola, which is currently in the planning phase. Moreover, I furthered the planning of the Circular Economy, providing a glimpse of civil society and private investment's role in establishing a solid business model to make this approach sustainable in the country.

What is your position now and your assignment?

I am serving as the Advisor for Environmental Affairs to the President of the Republic of Angola. My position has a flexible job structure, depending on the Presidency's priorities, wants and needs. The tasks can range from reviewing projects, plans and strategies to proposing courses of action, providing an opinion on current issues, decisions and participating in events. And because "Environmental affairs" are part of a vast description that fits in a diversity of development, conservation and sustainability topics, I can be involved in different branches of government or private initiatives. Typically, I am much more involved in Climate Action, Circular Economy, Biodiversity protection and Ethno-conservation projects. 

“What motivates me right now is the local communities that I work with.” This is a very interesting statement of yours. What is it like working with local communities and why is it so important?

Working with communities is humbling and fulfilling, to say the least. Conservation is a very territorial domain. We are constantly scrutinising efforts, doing case studies and researching new methods to improve our approach. We advise decision-makers based far away from the areas that need protection. Our diplomas, financial condition and accolades manufacture a false sense of “knowing best”. And it is only when one truly engages with local communities that one understands it should be the absolute contrary: we are not there to teach… we are there to learn. And in the process, we use all our acquired knowledge of global action to be vessels of ownership and stewardship: Vessels to provide tools that they need to foster their own ancient culture and beliefs, whether we believe in them or not, to help them solve any problems they identify in the best way they find fit, even if on trial and error, even if we disagree. Working with communities is assuring they have more than a sit at the table, but to ensure they own their past, present and future and support them with ideas, concepts and visions that they can relate to. And by doing that, we are making conservation truly sustainable and long-lasting, as it won’t depend on a person ‘changing the world’ but on a whole society shaping their future and protecting their (and our) heritage.
Working with communities assures environmental, economic, and social sustainability and, thus, balance. They depend on this balance to survive and can only achieve that balance with our help, not through our command. Their view of their environment goes beyond environmental sustainability. It intertwines the social and cultural beliefs that feeds such sustainability, never forgetting they have livelihoods to sustain. Their traditions are and were shaped by their surrounding nature. Their history involves their surroundings every step of the way, as they are part of their surroundings, and everything that happens to it happens to them. Thus, their relationship with their surroundings goes beyond the idealistic vision of people far away from it, defining what needs to be done from the comfort of their “developed ways”, deemed civilised and educated.
Local communities should be the real stewards of conservation. They should be treated as equal stakeholders in the conservation planning process, if not the most important ones. Not only do they know their environment better, but they also depend on its resources directly. They, better than anyone else, understand the importance of nature as they depend on its health. And better than anyone, they are equipped to successfully preserve it, even with new tools, visions and approaches. They had been doing so for centuries before they were then caught up in the prejudice of development and capitalism. And now is the time to empower them to own their heritage with pride and be the true guardians of their lands, which are usually mainly exploited by and for others.

What is the meaning of ‘Climate justice’ from an African, or even better, from an Angolan perspective?

I believe that the meaning of Climate Justice goes beyond its common definition, i.e. the inclusion, at a high level of decision-making, of individuals and communities in the policies to counter the effects of climate change. In my opinion, it goes much beyond a global political agenda of “inclusion”. It needs to be understood beyond numbers, greenwashing propaganda and beyond the mere race for a “greener reputation” of the most developed countries. We need to account that different parts of the world consume resources at different rates, despite their demography. More developed countries require a higher rate of resource consumption to satisfy their quality standards, most often imported from other locations.
According to the United Nations, “The lifestyles of people in the richest nations are heavily dependent on resources extracted from poorer countries, and they use considerably more resources than the countries these resources originate from.” For example, according to a 2019 report from WWF and the Global Footprint Network, Europe consumes 20% of the world’s “biocapacity”, despite comprising only 7% of the world’s population. Meanwhile, the Centre for Sustainable Systems from the University of Michigan states that the U.S., the EU and China consume 17%, 10,4% and 25% of the world’s energy despite comprising 5%, 7% and 18% of the world’s population. These three combined uses over half of the world’s energy for 30% of its population. Their impact on the climate change footprint is much more significant than those nations considered “poor” or “undeveloped”, whose resources are majorly exploited to feed the needs of the most developed nations. Yet, countries like Angola, which are at the bottom of these lists of usage of resources (note, use, not exploitation, as most our resources are exploited for others), are judged and suffer more with climate change than the countries that are demanding the most.
With all this information, climate actions need to be more considerate of the real polluters, the sufferers and the actual flow of resources around the world to create global plans and strategies that are more equitable and tailored to local action plans instead of unfairly demanding. And only then, can we all participate in a more realistic way to improve the future of climate on our shared earth.

Marco Sonsini