The Latin American Conservation Council (LACC) promotes Natural Climate Solutions in the region’s most Iconic Places to protect biodiversity
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Marcelo Moura
Email: prensa@tnc.org
- Council Members call for investing in nature to create equitable, nature-positive and carbon-neutral economies – beginning in the Amazon, Maya Forest, and Mesoamerican Reef.
- Two new Members joined the Council, championing 2025 sustainable sourcing commitments in the Amazon.
LACC Members call for investing in nature to reach the world’s 2030 biodiversity, climate, and sustainable development goals.
ARLINGTON and SAO PAULO, July 2021. – A sustainable business council met virtually this month to discuss how “greening” investments in post-COVID recovery can put countries on track to combat the biodiversity, climate and social crises that threaten the future of the region, and the world.
For the past 10 years, the Latin America Conservation Council (LACC) has partnered with The Nature Conservancy (TNC), to learn and take action to protect, restore, and better manage nature, delivering a triple win for biodiversity, climate, and local livelihoods. The LACC and TNC are working with hundreds of public-private partners in nine countries to align enabling incentives, investments, and industry standards to unlock the power of nature and reach our 2030 goals.
“Protecting and restoring Latin America’s natural wealth is critical to global efforts to reverse biodiversity loss, stabilize the climate, and make frontline communities healthier and more resilient,” said Jennifer Morris, CEO of The Nature Conservancy. “Investing in nature-based solutions is the path to an equitable, nature-positive, carbon-neutral future.”
During the meeting, Jennifer Morris shared TNC’s 2030 ambition to leverage the power of nature and policy to remove 3 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions (CO2e) per year – equivalent to nearly a tenth of global emissions from fossil fuels – benefiting 100 million people threatened by climate-related emergencies such as fires, floods, and drought. She emphasized that half of this natural climate solution can be found in the iconic forests, grasslands, rivers, wetlands, and coasts of Latin America – home to 40% of the Earth’s species, one-quarter of all forests, and one-third of all fresh water.
New LACC Members champion equitable, nature-positive, carbon-neutral Amazon.
During the June meeting, LACC Co-Chair, Sergio Rial, CEO of Santander Brazil, announced the addition of two new, Brazilian Council Members: Lorival Luz and Roberto Marques. “The challenge of our time is to move beyond demonstration projects to mainstream strategic conservation as a political and economic priority—for enhancing food and water security, and for delivering on each company’s, and each country’s existing biodiversity, climate, and sustainable development commitments,” Sergio explained. “We need ambitious and experienced leaders like Lorival and Roberto in key sectors and geographies to champion the triple benefit of nature-based solutions to reach a scale the matters over the coming decade.”
Roberto Marques is Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors and Group CEO of Natura &Co, a purpose-driven beauty group of iconic brands including Avon, Natura, The Body Shop, and Aesop. Roberto is a Board Member of the United Nations Global Compact, the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative, and serves as its sole representative from Latin America. He is also Co-Chair of the World Economic Forum’s Champions for Nature. With a strong track-record in sustainability, Natura &Co announced its 2030 Commitment to Life sustainability vision in June 2020 to protect biodiversity, address climate change, and promote human rights. Two key commitments are fostering collective action for zero deforestation of the Amazon by 2025; and achieving net-zero carbon emissions throughout the value chain, from extraction of raw ingredients to packaging disposal, by 2030.
Lorival Luz is global CEO at BRF, one of the world’s largest companies in the food industry. A top exporter of chicken protein, BRF is present in 117 countries with more than 30 brands including Sadia, Perdigão, Qualy, and Banvit. BRF has 41 production centers, approximately 100,000 employees, and 10,000 integrated farmers. In 2020, Lorival led BRF's 2030 Vision, which enshrines environmental, social and governance commitments as core business. Key commitments include sustainable value chains – achieving 100% traceability of grain from Brazil’s critical Amazon and Cerrado regions by 2025, net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, responsible stewardship of water and energy (called “ecoefficiency”), racial equity, and animal welfare.
About the Latin America Conservation Council
The Latin America Conservation Council (LACC) is a group of global leaders working with The Nature Conservancy in Latin America’s most iconic places to protect biodiversity, tackle climate change, and provide food and water sustainably. The LACC was formed in 2011 to work with public and private leaders to help conserve the region's "natural capital" – its healthy rivers, forests, and seas – by prototyping and promoting innovative, nature-based solutions that contribute to integrating conservation with development. To learn more, visit www.nature.org/lacc.
The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more sustainable. Working in 76 countries and territories—37 by direct conservation impact and 39 through partners—we use a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners. To learn more, visit www.nature.org or follow @nature_press on Twitter.