Forest Economy: Protecting Livelihoods and the Climate
A boat journey through the rainforest celebrated resilience and innovation, but was also a sobering reminder of what’s at stake. The effects of climate change are being felt deep in the Amazon rainforest.
PARTNER MEETING: The partner meeting took place aboard a riverboat on the Rio Negro river in Brazil. Photo: Sarah Lança
By Rainforest Foundation Norway.
In the first week in June, Indigenous leaders, community members, activists and donors came together on a riverboat on the majestic Rio Negro to reflect on five years of the Forest Economy Project, a pioneering forest economy initiative in the Brazilian Amazon.
Since 2021, Rainforest Foundation Norway and six Brazilian partner organizations have worked together to support Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities across three ecological corridors and close to 800 communities in developing sustainable livelihoods rooted in traditional culture. Through initiatives ranging from harvesting of non-timber forest products to community-based tourism and local food production, the program has demonstrated that economies do not have to exploit nature to thrive.
“With ForEco, we are building on everything we have learnt about how to best protect the Amazon from more than three decades of working in Brazil,” says Conrado Octavio, head of the Brazil Program at Rainforest Foundation Norway.
At the heart of the project lies the concept of a socio-bioeconomy.
“Unlike traditional economies based on surplus value and capital gain, socio-bioeconomies are based on care, on preservation. These economies are diverse and connected to ecosystem services, communities, and long-term local stewardship.”
Bianca Tozato, Instituto Socioambiental (ISA)
Livelihoods working with the forest, not against it
This meeting was far from ordinary. Hosted by FOIRN (Federation of Indigenous Organizations of the Rio Negro), it took place aboard a riverboat travelling down the Rio Negro, the largest tributary of the Amazon River, known for its blackwater, coloured by decaying vegetation. Over several days, the group visited communities participating in the project, hearing directly from families, young people, and local producers about the environmental changes they are experiencing.
Building sustainable economies based on considerate harvesting methods and respect for the environment, they find hope that they can both adapt to - but also turn the tide on climate change.
YOUTH COORDINATOR: Nadija Paula de Ninas, a youth coordinator with the Association of Riverside Indigenous Communities in Boa Vista, Brazil. Photo: Sarah Lança
In Boa Vista, Nadija de Paula Ninas, a youth coordinator with the Association of Riverside Indigenous Communities, shared how a local recreational fishing initiative and a newly established ecotourism project, Serras Guerreiras, transform life along the river.
“We want to stay here,” Nadija told us. “We are happy here, it is impossible not to be. Before, young people didn’t see opportunities. Now we do.”
Across the program, young people like Nadija make artisanal handcrafts from sustainably harvested materials, transform local foods in community kitchens, and find new ways to remain in and invest in their territories.
These are not economies built for unlimited growth. Instead, they are designed to preserve biodiversity, sustain traditions, and create livelihoods that work with the forest, not against
it.
CLIMATE CHANGE: This time of year, the Rio Negro river should be low from the dry season. With climate change, the weather patterns have become less predictable. Photos: Sarah Lança
The forest is changing, and so is the climate
“Our elders used to know the rhythm of the seasons,” said Francisco, president of the Indigenous Association Akhó Iwí in the community of Mercês. “Now, that rhythm is broken. You see it here: the river is high when it should be low. We used to know when it would rain — now we don’t.”
Scientific studies support what the communities are experiencing and have documented how intact forests are critical in regulating the global climate and mitigating climate impacts – and how traditional knowledge and Indigenous management practices are critical in keeping forests standing and thriving.
INDIGENOUS REPRESENTATIVE: Francisco, president of the Indigenous Association Akhó Iwí in Mercês, Brazil. Photo: Sarah Lança
And this is where the strength of ForEco and the socio-bioeconomy approach lies. It is not necessarily about scaling up individual value chains to compete in traditional markets, although there are examples of this within ForEco: Partners like UASEI have secured distribution of Açaí products across domestic markets, and several communities produce food for public school lunch initiatives. Rather, it is about how these value chains are positioned within diverse territorial production systems, rooted in knowledge and management systems of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities. Supporting this work means incentivizing a way of life that benefits the entire planet.
“Ancestry has everything to do with rainforest. The environment is deeply connected with its people, so there is no forest without people,” explains Tozato.
While traditional markets are not built to recognize or reward the multiple and layered contributions of Indigenous culture and practices, ForEco is an alternative rooted in the understanding that livelihoods, traditional culture and knowledge, production, and protection are not separate ideas – but intrinsically linked.
“When a community goes into the forest to harvest nuts, they also
monitor their territory,” Tozato continues. “They check on other fruits,
look for signs of illegal activity, and share information. It is all
interconnected, and that is what makes it so effective.”
Looking back - and moving forward
On the riverboat, stories of success, innovation, and the challenges that remain were shared. Partners from across the Brazilian Amazon described the challenges of limited market access, logistical hurdles, and the urgent need for greater political support and public investment in community-led solutions.
Progress has been made in diversifying value chains, building connections and platforms for knowledge-sharing across different parts of the Amazon, promoting livelihoods, and shifting policies to make space for community-led solutions and alternative economic models.
“Building on what we have accomplished – and learnt - these past years, there is now a real opportunity to expand our approach, scale what works, support what’s growing, and protect what matters,” concludes Octavio.
PARTNERS: Indigenous leaders, community members, activists and donors came together aboard a riverboat to reflect on five years of the Forest Economy Project. Photo: Gedilson Alexandre (Maxixi), Sarah Lança