In 2005, the Brazilian government created PDS Brasília, a sustainable settlement in the state of Pará. The settlement was designed to encourage 500 families to practice small-scale family farming, while also collectively using a standing forest to harvest its fruits and nuts, Mongabay’s Fernanda Wenzel reported in March.

The 19,800-hectare (49,000-acre) settlement was created following the killing of Bartolomeu Moraes, a peasant leader and trade unionist better known as Brasília, who had for years opposed a handful of powerful local ranchers from monopolizing land.

But two decades later, only 200 of the 500 families remain in the settlement, largely due to a lack of government and financial support, Wenzel reported.

Many families chose to sell their land to large ranchers, who in turn converted the forest settlement into pasture for cattle ranching, both done illegally.

Raimunda “Mariana” Rodrigues, who remains steadfast in maintaining her family farm, produces cacao on her 2.5 hectares (6 acres). Her family gets additional income from selling chickens, eggs, bananas and cassava.

With ranchers eyeing the area for cattle pasture, Rodrigues told Wenzel she wants to encourage fellow settlers to continue with sustainable family farming. She has created a women’s association with 33 settlers to produce fruit, but finding money to buy equipment to process and freeze the fruit pulp has been challenging, she said. The association is seeking funding from NGOs and private companies like mining firms that can pay for such initiatives to offset their environmental impacts.

Another challenge is the lack of support from banks.

Wenzel reported that the concept of the bioeconomy, which refers to sustainable economic activities that also protect standing forests, has become increasingly popular because of its potential to create income for traditional communities while addressing deforestation and climate change. One study found that the Amazon’s bioeconomy could generate $8 billion each year. However, private and public banks haven’t supported the PDS women adequately, Wenzel found.

Miguel Mernitzki, who inherited his father’s land in Pará’s Altamira municipality, followed in his father’s footsteps by becoming a beekeeper because it was a more affordable option than agribusiness or mining. He also lamented the lack of support from the government and the private sector for projects like his.

“To start a soybean plantation, you must have millions of reais. To work in gold mining, you must also have a lot of money to buy machinery. To be a logger, you have to have a truck, a tractor and an area to harvest wood,” he told Wenzel. “The bee, on the other hand, is something you grow slowly, and it pays for its work.”

Some larger businesses, such as Gustavo Grotto’s açaí business, have been able to secure bank loans. However, even for farmers like Grotto, fire outbreaks and drought have been challenging, increasing production and logistics costs.

Read the full story by Fernanda Wenzel here.

Banner image of Raimunda “Mariana” Rodrigues in her family farm. Image courtesy of Fernando Martinho.