Networks4conservation: Combating deforestation through local networks for transformative conservation
In Brazil, deforestation continues in several biomes, jeopardising biodiversity, climate and livelihoods. The project supports the implementation of national plans to prevent and control deforestation in the Cerrado, Caatinga, Pantanal, Atlantic Forest and Pampa. It strengthens local networks and improves the framework conditions for effective nature conservation. Socio-biodiversity product chains are being expanded in order to secure the income of indigenous, traditional and smallholder communities as well as medium-sized producers and to promote the conservation of natural resources. Innovative financing instruments support investments in a sustainable bioeconomy. By consolidating protected areas and developing practical instruments, the project shows how the protection of biomes can be harmonised with better living conditions. The approaches are transferable to other regions and promote integrative nature conservation.
- Countries
- Brazil
- IKI funding
- 30,000,000.00 €
- Duration
- 03/2025 till 02/2031
- Status
- open
- Implementing organisation
- German Caritas Association
- Political Partner
-
- Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MMA) - Brazil
- Implementing Partner
-
- Cerrado Network
- One Million Cisterns Program Association for the Semiarid
- United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
State of implementation/results
- In the Brazilian pavilion of UNCCD COP17 in Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia), the well attended Side Event “Invisible Biomes, Indispensable Solutions: Cerrado and Caatinga in the Fight Against Desertification” was held. In addition, the project was represented at the VI. Brazilian Conference on Ecological Restoration (SOBRE2026).
- The second phase of a feasibility study on the planned financing instruments of the project has successfully started and is under implementation since April 2026, with the instruments defined in the first phase being examined in depth regarding their intended effects and the needs of target groups in the project regions. The results serve as a basis for the selection and concrete design of the financing instruments to be implemented within the project.
- A short term plan to support strategically relevant political processes in 2026 was developed and key processes were professionally supported. These include, among others, a draft regulation to recognize protected area mosaics, a proposal to establish National Park Serrinha in the Federal District of Brasília (Distrito Federal), and a draft presidential decree to legally secure land rights of indigenous peoples, Quilombola communities, and other traditional peoples and communities.
- With the establishment of functional governance structures and the creation of a comprehensive monitoring system, important prerequisites for the successful implementation of the project have been created. The central steering and coordination bodies have begun their work, while coordination and cooperation with strategic stakeholder groups, including environmental authorities, as well as with relevant partner initiatives such as GIZ and the World Bank, have been specifically strengthened.-- The baseline study as well as gender, social, and environmental risk analyses were successfully completed; the results provided key data for project planning and were presented at a COP30 expert event on sustainable value chains of socio biodiversity. The figures were picked up by Brazilian media and increased public attention for sustainable products and their producers.
- The project was publicly announced within the framework of the Side Event “Local Communities Combatting Deforestation in Brazil – People Centered NDC Implementation” in the German pavilion of COP30, together with senior government representatives from Germany and Brazil, representatives of traditional peoples, and the Brazilian financial sector.
Latest Update:
09/2026
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