Unlocking economic opportunities to scale Forest and Landscape Restoration in Brazil

In the context of its NDC, the Brazilian government is seeking to restore around 12 million hectares of forest landscapes by 2030 – and it developed the national restoration strategy PLANAVEG to this end. The project supported policy makers, industry, landowners, NGOs and communities with data and guidelines for FLR, as well as prioritisation maps for the Amazon region and the Atlantic rainforest. It selected three areas in which the potential of FLR was investigated and effective measures were developed, relevant stakeholders were brought together, and plans for the restoration of the three landscapes were drawn up. To generate the necessary financial resources, the project also developed new financing mechanisms and set up a monitoring system for FLR. The ultimate aim of the project was to inspire stakeholders in other Brazilian landscapes to use similar instruments and guidelines and drive the large-scale restoration of forest landscapes in Brazil.

Project data

Countries: Brazil
IKI funding: 4,299,756.15 €
Duration: 07/2017 till 12/2020
Status: completed
Implementing organisation: World Resources Institute (WRI)
Political Partner: Brazilian Corporation of Agricultural Research

Brazilian Development Bank

Ministry of Environment - Brazil
Implementing Partner: International Institute for Sustainability - Brazil

The Atlantic Forest Restoration Pact

World Resources Institute (WRI)

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State of implementation/results

Project completed.
The project team has given support to other initiatives and contributed to discussions around FLR governance by the application of ROAM (Restoration Opportunity Assessment Methodology) and social network analysis in three landscapes. The team also stimulated local actors to create a local network with the participation of more than 150 people in the Paraiba Valley and to create three restoration technical chambers in watershed committee's (in Sao Paulo and Espirito Santo states) to develop restoration action plans.
In partnership with The Nature Conservancy, the Atlantic Forest Restoration Pact, Imazon, and the Brazilian Coalition on Climate, Forests and Agriculture, WRI Brasil is co-leading a technical working group to develop a national restoration and reforestation monitoring platform. The platform will be able to generate reports and analysis of indicators to monitor the evolution of restoration at multiple scales (project and landscape) and techniques (natural regeneration, tree planting).
The International Institute for Sustainability (IIS) compiled information and knowledge from restoration projects and initiatives in the Atlantic Forest and Amazon biomes, and generated two journal articles:
- Strassburg, B.B.N. et al. (2019). Strategic approaches to restoring ecosystems can triple conservation gains and halve costs. Nature Ecology & Evolution 3, 62-70.
- Santos, P.Z.F. et al. (2019). Can agroforestry systems enhance biodiversity and ecosystem service provision in agricultural landscapes? A meta-analysis for the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Forest Ecology and Management, 433, 140-145.
To help increase public awareness on FLR, a program based on the study Strassburg et al. (2019) was broadcasted in the main Brazilian TV channel (Globo). The video is available online: g1.globo.com/…
Project presentation at the "II Brazilian Conference on Ecological Restoration" in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, November 21-23, 2018.
WRI Brasil, in partnership with the Renova Foundation, ICRAF, and Fazenda Ecológica launched a restoration assessment of the Gualaxo watershed in June 2020. The results showed that the restoration of 77,000 hectares could generate 23 million reals to the local and regional economy.
In March 2020, the IIS launched the booklet titled “Best practices of Forest and Landscape Restoration in the Atlantic Forest and Amazon and its benefits for society and nature”. The material was developed for smallholders and farmers aiming to amplify the knowledge around the importance of regional planning and management.

Latest Update:
04/2024