Documentaries show sustainable businesses managed by traditional communities in the interior of the Amazon

Fruit of research supported by the Government of Amazonas, via Fapeam, materials aim to expand and enhance sustainable business

The story of entrepreneurs, who work in environmental conservation units, is being presented in four documentaries, which aim to expand and enhance sustainable businesses managed by traditional communities in the interior of Amazonas. The result of international research supported by the State Government, through the State of Amazonas Research Support Foundation (Fapeam), the project was coordinated by researchers from Amazonas and the United Kingdom.

The audiovisual materials were produced from the analysis of the needs of entrepreneurs, who work with value chains such as fish, seeds (oilseeds) and tourism in the Sustainable Development Reserves (RDS) of Puranga (Manaus), RDS of Rio Negro that covers the municipalities of Manacapuru, Iranduba and Novo Airão (distant 68, 27 and 115 kilometers, respectively from the capital), and also in the RDS of Uacari and Extractive Reserve of Médio Juruá, located in the municipalities of Carauari (distant 788 kilometers from Manaus) .

According to one of the project coordinators, Doctor of Social Sciences Tiago Jacaúna, from the Federal University of Amazonas (Ufam), one of the main needs reported by entrepreneurs in these locations was the question of visibility, that is, the disclosure of their businesses to the public. external, mainly in view of the potential that the activities bring, since they are sustainable undertakings, which value the conservation of nature.

With that in mind, four documentaries distributed by value chains were prepared, lasting around 15 to 20 minutes, which not only present the products and businesses, but also tell the life story of these entrepreneurs, in addition to a website about the project called from Valoram. The materials are available at: https://projetovaloram.wixsite.com/valoram/sobre-o-projeto-valoram.

“Our idea is to bring in actors outside the chains who can collaborate and generate new business for these communities. The documentaries were produced with this objective in mind. We also made technical documents that could help them improve their business and achieve more socioeconomic impact with them as well”, he highlighted.

The project team has also been conducting a series of workshops with local actors and people interested in collaborating with the chains.

“We organize the events, show and make available the documentaries, from that we discuss, in order to create solutions to enhance these value chains”, he added.

international call

Entitled “Visualizing and improving value chains in the Amazon: understanding the impact and promoting partnerships”, the project was developed by researchers from Ufam, the University of Leeds and the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio), through the international call Newton Fund Impact Scheme-International Call, carried out by Fapeam, in partnership with the National Council of State Research Support Foundations (Confap).

The call is the result of a partnership between Confap, British Council, and UK Research and Innovation – UKRI, and aimed to support projects already carried out or in progress by the Newton Fund, which is part of the official assistance system for development of the British government and aims to develop partnerships in science, technology and innovation to promote economic development and well-being in emerging countries.