Non-timber forest products are an important component of Amazonian indigenous and native communities’ economies. According to the Brazilian Government, extractivism generated R$ 6.2 billion in 2021 alone. If resources are well-managed, forest products like the Brazil nut can be sourced sustainably and foster biodiversity conservation. However, many collectors associations in Brazil still struggle to be financially sustainable, due to a lack of technical knowledge and poorly regulated markets that fail to compensate forest workers fairly.
To address this challenge and to support sustainable use of forest products in the Amazon, Conservation Strategy Fund (CSF) Brazil completed an Instituto Internacional de Educação do Brasil (IEB) funded project in partnership with Observatório Castanha-da-Amazônia (OCA), an association of Brazil nut collectors. CSF advised OCA on the best opportunities to design and implement a conservation Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) project to support the Brazil nut value chain, which has the potential to attract international resources, specifically from the carbon market.
We produced a technical report that includes a potential design for a PES program and held a webinar presenting results and provided capacity building. Our ultimate goals are to improve forest conservation in the Amazon, avoid unnecessary deforestation, and improve incomes for workers along Brazil nut value chain.
Photo Credit: Adriano Gambarini
