We consider business promotion to mean the provision of non-reimbursable resources to support capacity building, the creation and acceleration of social and environmental businesses, the prototyping of financial solutions, the strengthening of spaces for sharing and social organization, and the production of knowledge and information, among other aspects to support the development of the social and environmental impact business ecosystem.

As Vale’s private social investment vehicle, business promotion is an important part of our work and through it we develop relations with many agents and become part of a collaborative environment, sharing knowledge with local players, communities, investors and large companies.

We encourage the strengthening of social and environmental impact businesses and organizations that make the impact ecosystem more dynamic. We believe that these actions will contribute to a fairer and more inclusive economy and will have a positive impact on people’s lives and the environment.

Our decisions to support projects are underpinned by objective analysis and the experience and knowledge of people with practical experience of the challenges of social and environmental businesses and the impact ecosystem.

Bioeconomy Strategy

Since it began operations in 2010, Fundo Vale has supported several sustainable production initiatives that value people and biomes, especially in the Amazon. In 2020, after defining our 2030 Theory of Change, we made the decision to structure a strategy that would bring a longer-term vision, and that would better coordinate our portfolio of actions on the topic. Thus comes the Bioeconomy Strategy, which aims to promote solutions for businesses and socio-biodiversity chains that strengthen the Amazon bioeconomy with old and new partners, as we believe in the power of positive impact.

Discover the full document here!

Our business promotion portfolio

COVID-19 Social and Environmental Response Plan

This initiative by the Sustainable Connections Institute (Conexsus) is designed to mitigate the pandemic’s economic impacts on the financial health of community businesses and their base of producers. Support for enterprises takes place in various areas, such as management, legal aspects, access to markets, marketing and sales. The initiative has also activated a network for sharing experiences between organizations to strengthen their capacities. It has so far trained 30 rural credit agents to work with Banco da Amazônia and it has provided advice to more than 100 family farming and extractive organizations across Brazil. It works in coordination with Fundo CX’s Emergency Credit Line.

Amazon Impact Accelerator (AMAZ)

Created by Idesam, this accelerator is 100% dedicated to entrepreneurs who work in the Amazon. AMAZ grew out of the Partners for the Amazon Platform’s Acceleration and Investment Program, which accelerated 30 startups and was recognized as the best acceleration program in northern Brazil. It has so far invested around R$6.8 million in 11 ventures and it offers support to businesses in a wide range of areas, such as financial and administrative management, logistics cooperation and market access. Its operating model is based on blended finance, combining philanthropic resources with reimbursable investments.

Strengthening of Impact Investment and Business Ecosystem

Partnership with the Corporate Citizenship Institute (ICE) to help strengthen Brazil’s impact investment and business ecosystem through a set of initiatives working in a complementary manner to expand the supply of impact capital, increase the number of impact businesses, strengthen intermediary organizations and promote a macroenvironment that is conducive to this agenda. The partnership is focused on supporting four different areas of activity at ICE: Alliance for Impact Investments and Businesses; Academic Program; Impact Links Program; and Impact Investments and Businesses Forum.

Latimpacto

This Latin American network promotes the sharing of knowledge about innovative and effective impact management, measurement and funding models, facilitating connections and stimulating collaboration and co-investment. It connects the entire capital continuum, prioritizes impacts using venture capital and private equity tools, and connects Latin America to a global movement of venture philanthropy networks. Working with philanthropists and social investors, it seeks to mobilize more human, intellectual and financial capital for the impact ecosystem.

PrevisIA

This platform, the result of a partnership between Imazon, Microsoft and Fundo Vale, uses artificial intelligence to predict and prevent deforestation in the Amazon. Through imminent deforestation risk maps and statistics in the biome, it maps illegal roads in satellite images – one of the most important variables in predicting future deforestation. The technologies available on the PrevisIA platform have the potential to help public policies and initiatives prevent deforestation, contributing to the protection and conservation of the Amazon Rainforest.

Amazon Impact Entrepreneurship and Innovation Ecosystem

This initiative by the Certi Foundation aims to structure integrated entrepreneurship and innovation mechanisms and processes in order to scale up innovation in the Amazon. It plans to contribute to forest conservation by activating the impact entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem in the biome. In this first phase, pilot activities will take place to test methodologies and models, based on the organization’s experience in the innovation ecosystem of Florianópolis, a leader in this field in Brazil.