Brazil
In recent years, rising temperatures, little rainfall and lack of access to machinery have led to poor yields and reduced profits for smallholder farmers in Brazil’s Northeast region. To help promote sustainable agriculture, empower rural producers and strengthen the corn production chain, Global Communities and its partners are implementing the Prospera program.
Prospera expanded its operations to two additional states in 2023, bringing its total reach to four states in Brazil: Pernambuco, Ceará, Alagoas and Paraíba. The program supports farmers with modern technology and inputs to increase and sustain their yields. As a result, many are staying and farming locally rather than migrating to cities to pursue other economic prospects. Through a partnership with Corteva Agriscience, Prospera also provides technical assistance to an agriculture program boosting rural entrepreneurship and strengthening food security and income generation for women farmers in Brazil.
"If you work in [the city] you can earn money, but when you work hand in hand with Prospera, you can develop the region."
Antônio Albédio Soares
Farmer and Prospera program participant
The Recycle Project (Projeto Reciclar) — aimed at improving the living and working conditions of trash collectors — also advanced in 2023 with the signing of a cooperation agreement between Global Communities, the John Deere Foundation and the Banco do Brasil Foundation. The partnership aims to mobilize millions of reais in resources to build an operations facility for the recyclers’ cooperative and expand the project's socio-environmental impact beyond the city of Montenegro.
On another front, Brazil’s Ministry of Culture approved the My First Childhood (Minha Primeira Infância) Project, with implementation scheduled in three cities in 2024. The project aims to provide cultural activities to support the development of hundreds of children (ages 0-6 years old) and early childhood educational professionals from 7 public institutions with funding from John Deere and Massey Ferguson.
"For us, this cooperative will be very gratifying, because the staff will have a place to work with recyclable materials. We are often discriminated against and humiliated in the streets, so the cooperative will bring a lot of dignity. For us, it will be very good."
Pedra Olina da Silva
Trash recycler and Projeto Reciclar participant
We also provided consultancies for structuring the social strategies and corporate volunteer programs of two private organizations committed to the environmental, social and governance (ESG) agenda. Learn more about the social assessments we conducted for Lwart Soluções Ambientais (Lwart Environmental Solutions) and BP Bunge Bioenergia in our Notable Numbers.
Notable Numbers
Small rural farmers trained and equipped with tools and resources to modernize their agricultural practices, boost their yields and build long-term resilience
Children ages 0-6, their family members and early childhood education professionals who will benefit from the My First Childhood Project that was approved in 2023
Percentage of Projeto Reciclar participants who are black female heads of households