The JBS Fund for the Amazon will be dedicated to financing initiatives and projects that expand conservation of the forest and the sustainable development of the communities that live there, with an initial contribution of R$ 250 million in the first five years.
JBS will invite its stakeholders to contribute to the fund, and has agreed to match third-party contributions. The total funding target is R$ 1 billion by 2030.
The projects to be supported are on three fronts: forest conservation and restoration; socioeconomic development of communities, and scientific research and technology development.
“Curbing illegal deforestation is a key challenge to defending the Amazon. This challenge can only be effectively met by focusing on the quality of life and economic opportunities for the population of the region, especially the indigenous and riverine peoples and the quilombola communities who live there,” says Joanita Maestri Karoleski, president of the Fund. “We believe in the possibility of a sustaining Amazon, because we know that environmental preservation and socioeconomic development are intimately linked,” she stressed.