Writes especially about urban issues and the environment. Loves a good story. English/Brazilian Portuguese translator. Sociology graduate based in Fortaleza, Brazil.
Latest posts by João Miguel Lima
A Tale of Two World Cups in Fortaleza, Brazil
Before Brazil and Mexico battled it out in Fortaleza, the streets were taken over by people protesting FIFA and the government and by Mexican fans in high pre-match spirits.
A Handbook for Protesters During the World Cup in Brazil
As the 2014 World Cup begins in Brazil, protests against FIFA's interventions and the Brazilian government's spending are taking place all over the country, especially in the host cities. Concerned about excessive police reaction during protests, citizen's counselling organization Urucum, which works on human rights, communication and justice issues and...
Delayed Construction Works in Brazil Fuel “(un)Happy” Video
The contagious feeling triggered by Pharrell Williams’ viral music video “Happy” inspired citizens of Porto Alegre, Brazil, to take advantage of the fact that their city holds the Portuguese word for “happy” in its name — but rather to express what's making them unhappy. The video shows people dancing joyfully in front...
The Amazon, a Story of Destruction in the Name of Development
On December 2013, Agência Pública news agency launched 'Public Amazon', its first book of journalistic reports in Portuguese, with a debate to discuss the region's dilemmas.
Brazil's Occupy Cocó Park Fights to Save Nature Reserve from Construction
Construction of road overpasses over Fortaleza's Cocó Park kicked off with the destruction of almost 100 trees. The ensuing protests and police violence have thrust the park into the spotlight.
Free Bus Fare Protest Posters in Brazil
The publishing and design studio Meli-Melo decided to help out in the protests against rise in bus fares in São Paulo, offering their equipment to print out posters free of charge. An open call for page lay out was launched on Friday, 14 June [pt], on Facebook, and protesters replied quickly. Few...
Northern Brazil Peace Rally Pushes Back Against Rising Violence
With posters and banners crying out for peace, and much criticism for the violence threatening the neighborhood youth, hundreds of people - students, teachers, community leaders, artists and supporters - occupied the streets of Canindezinho in Fortaleza for a peace rally.
Construction Project Fuels Sex and Violence in Brazilian Amazon
Sex and violence are a part of life in the small Brazilian fishing town of Jaci Parana, where police struggle to keep up with crime as a nearby hydroelectric construction project in the state of Rondonia pumps money into the local economy.
Brazil: Cable Car Goes Up, Houses Come Down for World Cup
The construction of a cable car for tourists in preparation for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in the Morro da Providência favela in Rio de Janeiro is kicking residents out. Demolished houses are being traded for a stipend of 400 reais (200 US dollars), and many families have been unable find a place to live.
Brazil: Citizen Journalists Expose City's Unfinished Works
Project Amigos de Januária has shed light on the failure of a local Brazilian government, marred by a legacy of administrative wrongdoing and poor accountability, to complete public works projects on time.
Critical Mass: Cycling Through Brazil's Salvador City
In our attempt to discover the route of Brazilian Critical Masses, we spoke with two organizers of the Salvador Critical Mass (also known as “Bicicletada”), Roque Júnior and Rosa Ribeiro. Here's the second part of the interview, in which we get to know a little more about the city’s urban mobility policies.
Brazil: Concerns Over Public Health in Januária
Participants of the citizen journalism project Amigos de Januária, Rising Voices grantee of 2011, are carrying on the mission to monitor the local government of Januária, in Brazil. The latest posts on their blog refer to concerns over health and public safety.
Brazil: Project Discusses Political Campaign Sign Litter
Few months ahead of municipal elections in Brazil, the campaign Quem sujou agora, vai sujar depois [Who litters now, will litter afterwards] aims to raise awareness on how political candidates make Brazilian towns dirty during election campaigns. The project's page on Facebook [pt] gathers denouncing photos and videos sent by...
Brazil: Board of Social Communication Under Criticism
The Observatório do Direito à Comunicação, website of communication rights in Brazil, reports that [pt] the Board of Social Communication, elected by National Congress on July 17, is under criticism as the list of candidates was concealed and voting session was unannounced. Board members analyze, report and make recommendations on...
East Timor: Stunning Sunset Photos
Currently based in Dili, Timor Leste, the Australian media and policy professional Ashlee Betteridge shares on her blog Betty loves blogging four stunning photos of Dili sunsets, which “more often than not, put on a good show.”
Portugal: Tugaleaks Bank Account Deemed as Terrorist and Closed
Website Tugaleaks, which aims to serve since December 2010 as Portugal's Wikileaks, had its bank account for donations arbitrarily closed on July 13 with no official communication [pt]. Tugaleaks contributors were finally told the account had been closed based on Act 25/2008 [pt] of money laundering and terrorist financing, which...
Brazil/Portugal: Homophobia and the “Apparent Invisibility” of LGBT
On the blog No que tange, Maycon Lopes shares [pt] his experiences of being a homosexual in Brazil, where homophobia “motivates terrible killings”, and compares to situations he faced while living in Portugal for a year: “Portuguese society isn't violent […] however gays aren't so on sight”. He felt an...
Mozambique: Scholarship Students Kicked Out of Sudanese University
An open complaint letter published on social media by a group of scholarship holders from Mozambique at the International University of Africa, in Khartoum, Sudan, regarding their precarious social and financial situation, led to five of them being expelled and sent back to their home country.
Brazil: Video of Tribute to Murdered Forest Heroes
Watch the footage [en/pt] of Laísa Sampaio's speech at the UN on February, as she received a posthumous tribute to her sister Maria do Espírito Santo and brother-in-law José Cláudio, closing the International Year of Forests. Because of their efforts to protect the forest, they were killed. Laísa says “the...
Brazil: Navy Denies Entrance to Quilombo Rio dos Macacos
Tai Oliver reported on Quartoamarelo Ateliê studio Facebook page [pt] about recent abuses involving the Navy and Rio dos Macacos quilombo community in Bahia, Brazil, which struggles against eviction threats since February. She says the Navy, in control of the quilombo's entrance, denied access to four residents (woman, three children)...
Mozambique: Innovative Ways of Producing and Distributing News
Johannes Myburgh shared on Twitter the Mozambique Media Landscape guide, which he helped produce with Infosaid media project. Radio is considered the country's “most important channel of communication”, but Infosaid highlights independent and electronic newspapers – such as Faísca, Whampula Faz and Global Voices partner @Verdade [pt] – as...
