Over 133,000 people have already benefited from project financed by Fundo Vale
Bringing internet access to remote Amazonian communities is a significant challenge, but not an impossible one. In fact, in just two years, the Forest Peoples Connection project has connected 1,500 communities of indigenous people, quilombolas (descendants of runaway slaves), extractive producers and riverside dwellers across the Amazon Rainforest region.
On March 6, the 1,500th satellite broadband internet kit was installed in São Francisco do Castanhal, a community in the Lower Rio Branco-Jauaperi Extractive Reserve. The goal of the program is to form networks of communities in protected territories across the Amazon using broadband internet.
“We are thrilled and motivated by the results achieved so far. Connecting these communities is truly transforming residents’ quality of life,” said Márcia Soares, Fundo Vale’s Amazon and partnerships manager. So far, the project has over 44,000 registered users, directly benefiting approximately 133,000 people.
This networking initiative is led by three grassroots organizations – the National Association of Rural Quilombola Communities (CONAQ), the Association of Indigenous Organizations in the Brazilian Amazon (COIAB) and the National Council of Extractive Groups (CNS) – with support from Fundo Vale.
The project is built on three main pillars – infrastructure, community control and conscious digital inclusion – to ensure that the internet serves as a tool for social transformation. By providing access to healthcare, education and professional opportunities, it empowers communities while supporting forest conservation and responsible internet use.