Lead Organizer:
Nathalie Walker, National Wildlife Federation (www.nwf.org)

Co-organizers / Speakers:
Roberto Smeraldi, Amigos da Terra- Amazônia Brasileira (www.amigosdaterra.org.br)
Eduardo Trevisan, IMAFLORA (www.imaflora.org)
Paulo Barreto, IMAZON (www.imazon.org.br)
Michael Obersteiner, IIASA (International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis) (www.iiasa.ac.at)
Jacob Scherr, NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) (www.nrdc.org)
Calen May-Tobin [CMay-Tobin@ucsusa.org], from Union of Concerned Scientists
Moderator: Barbara Pyle, Captain Planet Foundation (captainplanetfoundation.org)
Carbon War Room

Brazil is an agricultural superpower, with the world?s largest commercial cattle herd, and is a major producer of crops including soy and sugar cane. In recent years, Brazil?s deforestation rate has declined to a quarter of its peak, without a reduction in agricultural output, while there has been an increase in efforts towards sustainability throughout the supply chains of major products. Cattle ranching is the largest driver of deforestation but techniques developed by the Brazilian Government Agricultural Research Corporation, Embrapa, can double herd densities through the use of improved pasture mixtures and breeds and rotational grazing. Embrapa?s techniques can increase rural employment, reduce methane emissions and free up land which can be used for crop production, while eliminating the need for deforestation. This is a key example of a win-win-win opportunity to integrate economic development with environmental sustainability and food security which offers lessons applicable to other countries.

Food Security, Green Economy and Biodiversity Conservation: opportunities and lessons from the Brazilian agriculture sector

This side event will be focused on a green economy and how it relates to poverty eradication and sustainable development. Leading Brazilian and international experts from across academia and civil society will present opportunities and lessons from the Brazilian agricultural sector, setting out a vision for increasing agricultural production, food security and employment while reducing deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions (GHG).

Brazilian agricultural exports have increased four-fold in the past decade and are predicted to continue to increase. Brazil has the world?s largest commercial cattle herd and is the largest exporter of beef. Cattle ranching is the primary use of cleared land in the Amazon and Brazil aims to increase its beef exports while reducing deforestation by 2020; and to achieve this, Brazil?s National Climate Change Policy calls for the recuperation of 15 million ha of degraded pasture. Moderate intensification of cattle, through improved pasture management, coupled with an agreement not to clear any additional forest offers win-win-win outcomes for ranch incomes, job creation and forest conservation.

Embrapa, the Brazilian Government Agricultural Research Corporation, has developed a model (Good Practices for Beef Cattle) for moderate intensification of pasture management which can double productivity through: innovative mixtures of native and non-native grasses and legumes which reduce methane emissions from cattle; improved animal husbandry and crossing with European breeds reducing the time to reach slaughter weight; active rotation and fenced paddocks helping to prevent pasture degradation. This model can increase production while using less land, so removing the need for deforestation and the freed-up land can be used for crop production.

These efforts are being supported by key players throughout the beef and leather value chains as the largest meatpackers, supermarkets and leather brands, have adopted zero deforestation policies and are working towards traceable, deforestation-free supply chains. Brazilian and international multistakeholder initiatives (including the Brazilian Roundtable on Sustainable Livestock, Grupo de Trabalho da Pecuária Sustentável) are supporting these efforts.

Assessing these programs and policies offers clear lessons for green industry that can be replicated throughout the tropics. Private sector involvement to address the challenges of creating sustainable supply chains, that can enable the Amazon cattle industry to grow without the need to clear any more forest, is important for developing green economy roadmaps. This blueprint for sustainable supply chains is an example of a decision-making framework which applies the three pillars of sustainable development ? economic, environmental and social ? in all relevant domains of public and private decision-making.

These lessons are also important for achieving the goal of the Commission on Sustainable Development, which calls for ?a new vision for global cooperation to implement policies that simultaneously aim at increasing agricultural productivity, creating fair trade regimes, conserving natural resources and promoting investment in agricultural related infrastructure?.


The following Brazilian and international Experts from Academia and Civil Society will present the latest data, opportunities, lessons, and workable solutions for the development of sustainable agriculture within the tropics:

Roberto Smeraldi, Amigos da Terra- Amazônia Brasileira (www.amigosdaterra.org.br)
Eduardo Trevisan, IMAFLORA (www.imaflora.org)
Paulo Barreto, IMAZON (www.imazon.org.br)
Michael Obersteiner, IIASA (International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis) (www.iiasa.ac.at)
Nathalie Walker, National Wildlife Federation (www.nwf.org)
Jacob Scherr, NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) (www.nrdc.org)
Sarah Roquemore, Union of Concerned Scientists (www.ucsusa.org)
Moderator: Barbara Pyle, Captain Planet Foundation (captainplanetfoundation.org)
Matthew Cullinen from Carbon War Room

Amigos da Terra- Amazônia Brasileira and IMAFLORA have been supporting sustainable supply chains, certification and a sustainable cattle industry for many years. Together with National Wildlife Federation, they are implementing a program of education and outreach for ranchers about these better practices throughout the Brazilian Amazon. IIASA has developed GLOBIOM, a global land-use model which can determine the risks, costs and benefits of different scenarios for agricultural production and forest conservation. Imazon is a leading Brazilian NGO involved in deforestation research and policies affecting land-use in the Brazilian Amazon. Union of Concerned Scientists and NRDC have been involved in forest policy at the international level (with UNFCCC REDD) for many years.