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Alessandra Melo, one of our EcoSiPas MSc students recently had the opportunity to showcase her research on the pequi (Caryocar Brasiliense) fruit at the renowned FLARE conference. Alessandra is investigating the value chains of this important non-timber forest product of the Cerrado in our study region. Different pathways to commercialise this fruit exist here, such as informal pathways or supported via the Brazilian Minimum Price Guarantee Policy for Socio-Biodiversity Products (PGPM-Bio). This policy offers subsidized payments to producers who sell their products below the minimum prices set by the federal government, with the aim of increasing their income and the value of their products. Alessandra could show that although PGPM-Bio has been beneficial for some small extractive producers in the case of pequi, it is faced by numerous challenges which limit its full potential, such as lack of awareness or bureaucratic procedures. Congratulations, Alessandra, for your inspiring presentation!

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Binyam Abayneh, one of our EcoSiPas Master students, successfully presented his ongoing MSc research at the recent Tropentag conference “Explore opportunities… for managing natural resources and a better life for all” in Vienna, Austria. His presentation titled “𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘙𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘈𝘥𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘕𝘰𝘯–𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘴 (𝘕𝘛𝘍𝘗) 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘳𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘊𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘰” focused on the 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 in 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 producers and various actors within the value chain. The 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘀, in order 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗺𝗮𝘅𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝘁𝗵e 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 they can possibly have on each stage of the NTFP value chain, was demonstrated. In the current setup, advisory services are limited by the amount of resources available and the lack of NTFP-related knowhow. Congratulations, Binyam, for your inspiring presentation!

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The EcoSiPas project team recently made an impact at the prestigious International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) World Congress ‘Forests & Society towards 2050’, held in Stockholm from the 23^rd – 29^th of June 2024. Our team presented several posters and oral contributions that showcased our recent developments and initial findings from the EcoSiPas project. One of the standout moments was when our PhD student Felipe Ribeiro won a poster prize for his presentation on ‘Are non-timber forest products concentrated at regional and state level in Brazil?’.

In addition to our conference presentations, we successfully conducted our annual project workshop during the event, providing the opportunity to review our progress, discuss challenges, and plan the next steps of the EcoSiPas project. The workshop was a collaborative and forward-looking session, ensuring that our project remains on track and continues to make significant contributions to ecological and sustainable practices in the Cerrado.