How to convince 95% of Brazilians to make their homes from wood

While more environmentally friendly, cost and local tradition are huge obstacles

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Agriculture and cattle ranching have been the major sources of deforestation in the Amazon.

(Michael Molinski is a senior economist at Trendline Economics. He’s worked for Fidelity, Charles Schwab and Wells Fargo, and previously as a foreign correspondent and editor for Bloomberg News and MarketWatch.)

SAO PAULO, Brazil (Callaway Climate Insights) — For centuries, Brazilians have made their houses from bricks, masonry, mud and adobe. Only 4% of homes are made of wood. Lately, however, Brazilians are being asked by the lumber industry, the government and environmentalists to give up their centuries-old tradition and start making their homes from wood in order to save the environment.

So far, that effort has fallen on deaf ears.