A critical discourse analysis of Brazil's response to the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism

Morley Cromwell and Laurel Besco

Chapter 9 in Frontiers in the Low-carbon Transition, 2026, pp 147-165 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter examines how Brazil discursively constructs and responds to the European Union's (EU) Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) in both international and domestic arenas. Situated within debates on the limits of multilateral climate governance and the rise of unilateral policy instruments, it analyses CBAM as part of the EU's Fit-for-55 package and its implications for Brazil as a BASIC member and major steel exporter. Using critical discourse analysis integrated with policy diffusion theory and Hall's (1993) typology of policy change, the study draws on WTO documents, official government statements, Senate news, and Brazilian media. The analysis finds a dual response: internationally, Brazil frames CBAM as unilateral, protectionist, and coercive; domestically, it pursues incremental policy adaptation, including progress towards an emissions trading system (SBCE). The findings show that discursive resistance can coexist with institutional alignment, as Brazil advances carbon governance in line with domestic priorities while responding to EU pressure.

Keywords: Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism; Critical Discourse Analysis; Policy Diffusion; Climate Governance; Brazil; Emissions Trading System (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781049412115
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.elgaronline.com/doi/10.4337/9781049412122.00018 (application/pdf)
Our link check indicates that this URL is bad, the error code is: 403 Forbidden

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:elg:eechap:26021_9

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.e-elgar.com

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Chapters from Edward Elgar Publishing
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Jack Sweeney ().