New technology will provide support for the implementation of agroforestry systems and help companies with their decarbonization strategies
New York Climate Week was the setting for the launch of Courageous Land’s agroforestry intelligence platform, which is supported and strategically co-developed by Fundo Vale. The platform has an innovative approach, offering support to landowners and organizations in the agroforestry process by providing tools for diagnosis, planning, financing and technical assistance, as well as access to product markets and carbon credits. It will also help corporate partners with their decarbonization strategies.
The launch took place during a panel discussion called “Where Innovation and Natural Capital Meet,” held at the World Economic Forum on September 24. The platform stands out for its combination of software, human capital and partners to facilitate the entire production process, from identifying sites and managing agroforestry areas to marketing products.
The global market for Courageous Land’s solutions is vast. In Brazil alone, where land use is responsible for more than 70% of CO2 emissions, converting 90 million hectares of degraded pastureland into agroforestry systems would generate tens of billions of dollars in annual revenue while sequestering billions of tons of carbon.
“Being a co-developer of the platform is a continuation of our efforts to foster a new, fairer, more sustainable and inclusive forest economy. Since 2020, through Vale’s Forest Goal, we have been looking for new economic options to scale up agroforestry systems. This platform offers a way, based on technology and agroforestry intelligence, to accelerate the spread of agroforestry by connecting producers, markets, financing and technical assistance, acting systemically, reducing forest replacement costs and moving from one-off projects to a larger scale with opportunities to generate income for producers and communities, thereby creating greater shared value from sustainable land use,” said Gustavo Luz, Fundo Vale’s executive director and a member of the platform’s official advisory board.
The partnership between Fundo Vale and Courageous Land is making a meaningful contribution to Vale’s 2030 Forest Goal. So far it has restored 82.45 hectares, and the expectation is to reach 10,000 hectares by 2030. Vale has voluntarily committed to recovering and protecting an additional 500,000 hectares of forest by 2030, in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Of this area, 400,000 hectares will be earmarked for protecting forests and 100,000 hectares for restoring sites through a model that seeks to develop the positive social and environmental impact business ecosystem.
“When implemented on a large scale, agroforestry is the only solution I know of that can simultaneously tackle climate change, poverty, food and water security, and biodiversity loss, while offering attractive financial returns. We appreciate the donation and the partnership with Fundo Vale to scale up agroforestry as quickly as possible and achieve our mission of mitigating climate change,” said Philip Kauders, CEO and co-founder of Courageous Land.
Platform endorsed by World Economic Forum
The launch event for Courageous Land’s agroforestry intelligence platform was organized by UpLink, the World Economic Forum’s open innovation platform. UpLink’s mission is to build bridges between innovative businesses, investors and partners.
UpLink’s partners are large corporations, governments, NGOs and experts who organize the UpLink Innovation Challenges and support the winning initiatives in scaling up their solutions.
Fundo Vale is considered a “Top Investor,” as impact investors that join UpLink are called. In turn, Courageous Land is rated a “Top Innovator,” as the enterprises selected through the UpLink Innovation Challenges are called. This initiative is an example of the type of impact that can be catalyzed through cooperation between Uplinkers.
“We recently released a report about innovation in natural capital solutions, and the platform launched by Courageous Land in partnership with Fundo Vale is one of the case studies in that report. We are excited about the speed and scale that this platform offers to tackle the climate and nature crises,” said Allison Voss, innovation and nature leader at the World Economic Forum.