Some 1.4 million Brazilians live in Rio de Janeiro’s favelas, or shanty towns, or 22% of the city's residents. Most of these people have no access to green spaces.

Not surprisingly, in the recent heatwaves hitting South America it is the poorest who are suffering the most. But a self-taught environmentalist is determined to demonstrate that a solution exists.

CGTN’s Lucrecia Franco reports.

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