Scaling Brazil Nut Ventures for Forest Protection

The colors of Autumn are shining! We've got a lot of exciting updates happening at Brainforest to share with you. From new projects in the pipeline, to updates from our existing ventures and upcoming events. This newsletter showcases the highlights you won't want to miss. 

What's New at Brainforest?

Unlocking the Bioeconomy with Non-Timber Forest Products.
Scaling a successful community bioeconomy franchise to protect Suriname's forest.

We are cooking the next venture in our Brainforest lab! 

The Bioeconomy and Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) market is growing, and it is a core pillar for protecting forests and biodiversity. Conservation International Suriname (CIS) led a successful fusion of conservation agreements and indigenous & tribal businesses in several pilots that can now be scaled to achieve the largest contiguous block of protected forest in the world. Brainforest is therefore partnering with CIS on a joint initiative to scale the Brazil nut (and other NTFPs) bioeconomy pilot into a franchise.

The sale of these products will create alternative livelihoods to mining and logging for all local forest communities. In exchange for participating in the franchise (capacity building, the establishment of a brazil nut processing facility, etc.), the communities sign conservation agreements (e.g. to regulate hunting, forswear gold mining, fight illegal wildlife trafficking and monitor vegetation burning). The sustainable income will lead to reduced deforestation in the whole country of Suriname. In addition, remote sensing technologies (including satellites and airborne observations) will allow for efficient and objective monitoring of biodiversity levels or measurements of carbon captured in forests.

Why Bioeconomy?

Dr. Carlos Nobre is a member of our Advisory Board and one of the most important voices of Bioeconomy. In this video he explains why we need to start valuing standing forests and the products they provide, showing how the açaí berry is expected to bring back billions of dollars to the Amazon economy. Hear his vision on how agroforestry could be a solution to protecting tropical forests around the world.

Venture Updates

First anniversary and new funding

In October, we celebrated Xilva’s first birthday! It has been an incredible first year for our portfolio venture! Here are some highlights from the past year. Xilva is about to close a seed funding round, which will enable the team to grow and scale its digital forest marketplace.

Ecosystem Value Association (EVA) e.V. meets politicians and decision makers within forestry and climate

We have kicked off the Forest Carbon Standard pilot phase! More than 80 participants from the Forest Carbon Council and the group of pilot projects accepted the invitation of EVA on October 17 and 18, 2022 in the Eastern Harz Mountains at Schloss Blankenburg to learn about the development status of the Forest Carbon Standard. We can now begin testing the standard. 

Accompanied by TÜV, 10 to 15 pilot projects in Germany will undergo certification in November. EVA certificates from reforestation can thus be issued to the participating forest owners for the first time in December, included in the EVA-registry and traded on the voluntary market. EVA will present the final version of the first German Forest Carbon Standard (version 1.0) in summer 2023.