In August 2026, NESsT, in partnership with Instituto Internacional de Educação do Brasil (IEB) and the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF), is launching Raízes do Cerrado: Strengthening the Sustainability and Impact of Socio-Bioeconomy Enterprises for Conservation. The initiative aims to strengthen the socio-bioeconomy as a pathway to conserving the Cerrado, one of the most biodiverse biomes in the world.
Over 18 months, a civil society organization working in the Cerrado will participate in a tailored organizational strengthening process led by NESsT, connecting financial sustainability, inclusive governance, social and environmental impact, and biodiversity conservation.
The initiative is grounded in a core principle: conserving biodiversity also means creating the conditions for enterprises and organizations developing solutions rooted in their territories to thrive sustainably. By strengthening their capacities and resilience, the project seeks to bring conservation, income generation, and local development closer together.
IEB and CEPF have an established collaboration in the Cerrado, supporting civil society participation and biodiversity conservation initiatives across the biome. Through Raízes do Cerrado, this territorial experience comes together with NESsT’s approach to strengthening impact-driven organizations and enterprises, bringing complementary capacities around a shared goal.
CEPF works globally to finance initiatives that protect regions of high biodiversity importance, with a particular focus on civil society participation. It is a joint initiative of the French Development Agency, Conservation International, the European Union, Fondation Franklinia, the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, the Global Environment Facility, the Government of Canada, the Government of Japan, the Hempel Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, and the World Bank.
The Cerrado and Biodiversity Conservation
The Cerrado is home to around 5% of the planet’s biodiversity and plays an essential role in sustaining Brazil’s water resources, giving rise to major rivers and watersheds, including the Tocantins and São Francisco river basins.
Its ecosystems contribute to climate regulation, soil and water protection, food production, and the livelihoods of millions of people.
Conserving this diversity also requires addressing the economic, social, and organizational conditions of the people and enterprises that live, work, and operate in these territories. In this context, expanding the capacity of local organizations to develop sustainable solutions is an important part of building conservation strategies that can deliver long-term results.
Strengthening Organizational Capacity to Expand Impact
The project will support a civil society organization working in the Cerrado that is part of CEPF’s portfolio of supported initiatives. The organization will participate in a tailored organizational strengthening process led by NESsT.
The process will combine an organizational assessment, the development of an action plan, in-person workshops, at least ten mentoring sessions, and support to develop monitoring systems.
The goal is to expand the organization’s capacity to make strategic decisions, strengthen its internal systems, advance its financial sustainability, and more consistently track the impact generated in its territory.
The process will be guided by indicators across four complementary dimensions: economic, social, environmental, and biodiversity. Key areas of focus will include inclusive governance, gender equity, youth participation, environmentally sustainable practices, financial sustainability, and monitoring of conservation outcomes.
The Socio-Bioeconomy as a Pathway to Conservation
Biodiversity conservation is directly connected to living conditions and economic opportunities in local territories.
In this context, the socio-bioeconomy plays a strategic role. By connecting income generation, the value of biodiversity and local knowledge, and the sustainable use of natural resources, it creates pathways for economic opportunities that are aligned with conservation and territorial development.
Stronger local organizations are also better positioned to plan for the long term, access new opportunities, improve their management, and monitor the results they generate.
Raízes do Cerrado brings together NESsT’s experience in strengthening impact-driven organizations and enterprises, IEB’s territorial work with civil society in the Cerrado, and CEPF’s work in biodiversity conservation. These complementary areas of expertise seek to create the conditions for economic development, social impact, and conservation to advance together.
Learning That Can Expand Impact
In addition to the work carried out directly with the participating organization, Raízes do Cerrado aims to generate learning that can contribute to other conservation and sustainable development initiatives.
Over the 18-month period, the organization’s progress will be tracked through economic, social, environmental, and biodiversity indicators. At the end of the project, results, challenges, and lessons learned will be systematized and shared with CEPF and the broader conservation community.
The experience will also help deepen understanding of the relationship between organizational strengthening, the socio-bioeconomy, and biodiversity conservation, generating insights that can support other organizations and initiatives committed to building more inclusive, sustainable economies rooted in local territories.
Through Raízes do Cerrado, NESsT, IEB, and CEPF bring together complementary experience and capacities to strengthen local organizations and expand the potential of the socio-bioeconomy to create opportunities, contribute to biodiversity conservation, and build a more resilient Cerrado.
About NESsT
NESsT invests in enterprises that create quality jobs for underserved communities while sustaining the planet. Since its founding in 1997, NESsT has invested over $55M and trained and supported over 39,000 entrepreneurs across 50 countries. It has accelerated and financed more than 510 enterprises, in total sustaining more than 211,000 formal jobs and improving the lives of 4.7 million people from underrepresented communities around the world.
About CEPF
CEPF is a joint initiative of l'Agence Française de Développement, Conservation International, the European Union, Fondation Franklinia, Fondation Hans Wilsdorf, the Global Environment Facility, the Government of Canada, the Government of Japan, the Hempel Foundation, The Nature Conservancy and the World Bank. A fundamental goal is to ensure civil society is engaged in biodiversity conservation.