Between April 28th and 30th, national and local organizations met in Palmas (TO) to structure an alliance aimed at strengthening the socio-biodiversity chains of jatobá and golden grass in Tocantins. The initiative was organized by WWF-Brazil, Central do Cerrado, and the Institute for Society, Population and Nature (ISPN). The meeting was attended by 20 organizations, including agro-extractive associations and civil society organizations such as Rede Cerrado, Caritas Germany, Funatura, Onça d'Agua, among others.
The meeting resulted in the collective development of an action plan aimed at strengthening both supply chains. Each participating organization assumed leadership of specific activities. The main areas of operation include the Environmental Protection Areas (APAs) of Cantão, Jalapão, Lajeado, and the Serras Gerais region.
The goal of the initiative is to build a joint and synergistic approach between institutions already working in the territory, leveraging resources, knowledge, and strategies to amplify the impact of actions within local communities.
“The idea is to complement the skills and expertise of the institutions, with each offering the Alliance what it does best. In this way, the work gains strength and greater scope. Our goal is to increase the scale of production and access to socio-biodiversity products, such as breads and biscuits made with jatobá flour for student snacks in all schools in Tocantins,” explains Silvana Bastos, coordinator of the ISPN Socio-biodiversity Program.
Unprecedented action
The meeting marks an unprecedented moment: it is the first time that all these organizations have collectively come together around these two value chains to develop integrated strategies focused on socio-biodiversity in Tocantins. The alliance brings together institutions with different expertise, creating a network capable of acting in a complementary way on issues related to territory, production, and marketing.
During the program, participating organizations conducted an environmental analysis (internal and external contexts), highlighting the socio-environmental problems experienced by the population and seeking solutions through sustainable approaches. This is the case with school meals that offer nutritious food with a smaller carbon footprint, as they do not depend on petroleum-derived inputs and are produced in traditional territories without suppressing native vegetation of the Cerrado or the Amazon. The analysis also included mapping the current scenario of socio-biodiversity value chains in Tocantins, identifying actors, challenges, and opportunities.
At the event, WWF-Brazil presented a study on the jatobá value chain. The survey involved various actors in the chain, with interviews conducted with multinational, national, and local companies that work with the species. From these conversations, it was possible to identify the main bottlenecks, difficulties, and opportunities. The results were presented to jatobá producers for validation of the findings, so that they can also guide strategies for action in the chain. The study will also be published by WWF-Brazil.
“It was an important moment to find synergies between the work of the 20 organizations and to build strong networks to work with socio-biodiversity. In this meeting, we at ISPN are paying special attention to working with jatobá, which is a native species of the Cerrado with great potential for local communities,” highlighted Bárbara Fellows, socio-environmental analyst of the ISPN Socio-biodiversity Program.
Among the participants, ISPN was recognized by local stakeholders for its trajectory in the state, especially through the Ecos Fund and the research conducted on golden grass, the symbolic plant of Jalapão and the basis of an important artisanal chain for the region. The institute was also acknowledged for its participation in the Voices of Tocantins for Climate Justice Coalition.