case studies undp: pacari network, brazil

7/27/2019 Case Studies UNDP: PACARI NETWORK, Brazil

1/13

Equator Initiative Case StudiesLocal sustainable development solutions for people, nature, and resilient communities

BrazilPACARI NETWORK

Empowered live

Resilient nation


2/13

UNDP EQUATOR INITIATIVE CASE STUDY SERIES

Local and indigenous communities across the world are advancing innovative sustainable development solutions that wo

or people and or nature. Few publications or case studies tell the ull story o how such initiatives evolve, the breadth

their impacts, or how they change over time. Fewer still have undertaken to tell these stories with community practition

themselves guiding the narrative.

To mark its 10-year anniversary, the Equator Initiative aims to ll this gap. The ollowing case study is one in a growing ser

that details the work o Equator Prize winners vetted and peer-reviewed best practices in community-based environmenconservation and sustainable livelihoods. These cases are intended to inspire the policy dialogue needed to take local succ

to scale, to improve the global knowledge base on local environment and development solutions, and to serve as models

replication. Case studies are best viewed and understood with reerence to The Power of Local Action: Lessons from 10 Years

the Equator Prize, a compendium o lessons learned and policy guidance that draws rom the case material.

Click on the map to visit the Equator Initiatives searchable case study database

EditorsEditor-in-Chief: Joseph CorcoranManaging Editor: Oliver Hughes

Contributing Editors: Dearbhla Keegan, Matthew Konsa, Erin Lewis, Whitney Wilding

Contributing WritersEdayatu Abieodun Lamptey, Erin Atwell, Jonathan Clay, Joseph Corcoran, Sean Cox, Larissa Currado, David Godrey, Sarah Gordon,

Oliver Hughes, Wen-Juan Jiang, Sonal Kanabar, Dearbhla Keegan, Matthew Konsa, Rachael Lader, Erin Lewis, Jona Liebl, Mengning Ma

Mary McGraw, Brandon Payne, Juliana Quaresma, Peter Schecter, Martin Sommerschuh, Whitney Wilding

DesignSean Cox, Oliver Hughes, Dearbhla Keegan, Matthew Konsa, Amy Korngiebel, Kimberly Koserowski, Erin Lewis, John Mulqueen,

Lorena de la Parra, Brandon Payne, Mariajos Satizbal G.

AcknowledgementsThe Equator Initiative acknowledges with gratitude Pacari Network, and in particular the guidance and inputs o Ms. Lourdes Cardo

Laureano. All photo credits courtesy o Pacari Network. Maps courtesy o CIA World Factbook and Wikipedia.

Suggested CitationUnited Nations Development Programme. 2013. Pacari Network, Brazil. Equator Initiative Case Study Series. New York, NY.
http://www.equatorinitiative.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=747:10years&catid=189:2012-eventshttp://www.equatorinitiative.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=747:10years&catid=189:2012-eventshttp://www.equatorinitiative.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=747:10years&catid=189:2012-eventshttp://www.equatorinitiative.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=747:10years&catid=189:2012-eventshttp://equatorinitiative.org/index.php?option=com_winners&view=casestudysearch&Itemid=858


3/13

PROJECT SUMMARYPacari Network brings together 47 traditional pharmacies

and community-based organizations to cultivate medici-

nal plants, preserve traditional ecological knowledge and

health traditions, and protect the biodiversity o Brazils

Cerrado biome. In the absence o comprehensive legisla-

tion recognizing traditional health practices, Pacari has mo-

bilized medicinal plant producers and local health practitio-

ners to develop sel-regulation.

Standards have been put in place to regulate the prepara-

tion o traditional remedies, saety and sanitary conditionsor plant processing, and sustainable harvesting techniques.

Through its Pharmacoepia o People o the Cerrado, Pacari

has developed a unique system o documenting traditional

knowledge involving the participation o over 260 tradi-

tional health providers. The health benets rom the initia-

tive extend to more than 3,000 poeple per month. Medici-

nal plant cultivation and the operation o small pharmacies

also provide jobs and sources o income.

KEY FACTS

EQUATOR PRIZE WINNER: 2012

FOUNDED: 1999

LOCATION: Minas Gerais, Gois, Tocantins and Maranho

BENEFICIARIES: 47 community-based organizations

BIODIVERSITY: The Cerrado biome

3

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Background and Context 4

Key Activities and Innovations 6

Biodiversity Impacts 8

Socioeconomic Impacts 8

Policy Impacts 10

Sustainability 11

Replication 11

Partners 12

PACARI NETWORKBrazil


4/13

4

The Cerrado

ocated on the plateaus o Brazils central high plains in the north-

ast o the country, the Cerrado is a vast tropical savannah that

pans the states o Gois, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso, Tocantins and

Maranho. Covering nearly 800,000 square miles, this biome covers

pproximately 21 per cent o Brazils land area. The Cerrado is the

worlds most biologically rich savannah, home to over 10,000 species

plants, almost hal o which are endemic to the Cerrado, as well as

number o endemic bird and mammal species. The Cerrado also

eeds three o the major water basins in South America: the Amazon,

araguay and So Francisco Rivers.

Despite its high level o biodiversity, the Cerrado remains one o

he least protected savannahs in the world. Although in theory the

Cerrado is protected to a degree by Brazils Forest Code, this law is

oorly enorced, and less than two per cent o the Cerrado is ormally

rotected in national parks or conservation areas. Until recent

ecades, the Cerrados main inhabitants were indigenous peoples

nd small-scale armers who survived primarily by subsistence

arming, clearing small areas o land to grow crops and raise cattle.

However, the 1960s marked the beginning o the expansion o large

cale commercial agriculture across the Cerrado. In the decades

ince then, Brazil has become one o the worlds greatest producers

nd exporters o soybeans, much o which is grown in the Cerrado.

Over the past 25 years, some 35 per cent o the Cerrado has beenleared o its native vegetation to support large-scale agricultural

nd livestock production, and its important biodiversity continues

o be overlooked in avour o agricultural expansion.

Medicinal plants and traditional healers of the Cerrado

One group o people that does not take the Cerrados biodiversity

or granted is the raizeiros (and raizeiras) traditional olk-healers

the Cerrado biome who use the regions medicinal plants to

prepare home remedies or a variety o ailments and diseRaizeiros traditional knowledge is passed down rom genera

to generation, and they hold detailed knowledge o local na

resources and techniques or plant collection. The traditional e

o the raizeiros is to respond to the health needs o their commun

accepting small payments or products in exchange, and reque

providing their services ree o charge. The knowledge and tradi

o the traditional healers represent an intangible cultural her

that deserves to be preserved along with the Cerrado biome i

Recognising this, a civil society network was established in 199

preserve the biodiversity o the Cerrado by promoting the legitim

o the traditional healers and communities that rely on its na

resources.

Articulao Pacari

The Pacari Network (Articulao Pacari) was born ou

participatory research carried out by two civil society netw

the Cerrado Network, which brings together more than 300

society organizations working or the promotion o sustain

development and conservation o the Cerrado, and the Medi

Plants Network o South America. The aim o this collabora

was to identiy opportunities or and challenges acing

organizations working with medicinal plants in the region. From

diagnostic beginning, the Pacari Network emerged organically

support system or these local groups. With the help o internatdonors, including the UNDP-implemented Global Environm

Facility Small Grants Programme (GEF-SGP), and in partne

with relevant government ministries, the network has evolved

the past decade to ll a variety o unctions: rom documen

and promoting the work o traditional olk-healers, gatherers,

producers; to improving processing practices and helping produ

to collectively market their products; and nally to increasing

shared bargaining power in advocating or more avourable po

and legislation concerning medicinal plants.

Background and Context


5/13

55

oday, Pacari Network brings together 47 community organizations

hat promote traditional medicine and the sustainable use o the

Cerrados resources, in ten regions throughout the states o Minas

Gerais, Gois, Tocantins and Maranho. In addition to protecting

ative plant species used in the preparation o traditional medicines,

he network has been able to inuence national legislation to

ecognize the practice o traditional medicine, and to stem the loss

traditional knowledge that occurs when the chain o transmission

etween generations is broken.

he networks membership includes several social groups that

re marginalized in Brazil, such as smallholder armers, gatherers,

grarian reorm settlers, womens groups, people receiving immigrant

nd health benets, coconut palm workers, and community

rganizations representing Aro-Brazilians and indigenous

eoples. Ninety per cent o the networks members are women.

raining opportunities are oered to all o these social groups and

ommunity organizations, as are opportunities or participation in

he management o Pacari Network.

Organizational Framework

Community organizations involved in the Pacari Net

meet annually at a general assembly, where they elect 19

representatives (known as the Pacari Association), review

networks budget, renew membership, and evaluate past activ

In addition to the Pacari Association, the networks organizat

ramework includes regional organizers and a Board o Directo

each region where the network operates there is a regional orgawhose responsibility it is to integrate local groups into reg

activities and inorm them o the decisions o the national netw

The Board o Directors is comprised o a senior manager, a ge

secretary, a treasurer, an audit committee, and their substitutes,

whom are elected or a three-year term. Four members o the b

are in charge o policy ormulation or the Pacari Network, w

there are two executive coordination advisors who are endorse

the general assembly. Policy coordination o the Pacari Netwo

currently carried out by our women, representing a womens gr

agrarian reorm settlers, an Aro-Brazilian community organiza

and amily armers respectively.


6/13

6

Key Activities and Innovations

he three pillars o the Pacari Networks work are: promoting the

ustainable collection and cultivation o medicinal plants; introducing

mproved, more sanitary techniques in community pharmacies; and

nhancing the preservation and communication o the wealth o

nowledge held by traditional healers, to ensure that it is passed

on to the next generation. Specic activities o the network include

participatory research, acilitating knowledge exchange between

ommunities, building the capacity o its members, producing and

ecording knowledge on traditional medicine, and participating in

public policy ormulation.

Activities are inormed by the extensive participatory research

arried out at the beginning o the networks existence to identiyhe most pressing needs o the community-based organizations

nd traditional healers who rely on the Cerrados rich biodiversity.

Major concerns that were identied by this research included the

perceived lack o legitimacy o the practice o traditional medicine,

hreats to communities access to biodiversity, the need to protect

nd preserve traditional knowledge, and the need to develop

ncome strategies adapted to the realities o the Cerrados rural

ommunities. Pacari Networks programming is tailored to respond

o these needs and challenges.

Community pharmacies

A major element o Pacari Networks work is supporting communitypharmacies to modernize their processing techniques and

promote good health practices. The network currently supports

1 community pharmacies where home remedies are prepared

ollectively by community groups. Each community pharmacy has

ts own site that is open to the public. The structure usually consists

o one or two rooms, a bathroom, and a garden o medicinal plants.

Community pharmacies produce some 14 orms o home remedies,

ncluding tinctures, syrups, vinegar medicinal ointments, creams,

oaps, pills or medicinal gums, candy or jelly medicines, medicated

oils, powders and teas. About 70 dierent plant species are use

produce an average o 40 dierent medicines. Approximately 4

cent o the plants used are endemic to the Cerrado.

Most community pharmacies are operated by women typica

group o three to six raizeiras. While Pacari Network provides sup

or these pharmacies, they remain largely sel-sustaining busine

that are individually managed by the local healers or commu

In many communities, these pharmacies are the rst port o

or healthcare, and remedies are sold at low cost and reque

donated to those who cannot pay. Thus they provide an esse

service to the rural communities they serve. Revenue rom the

o remedies sustains the pharmacies work.

Despite the importance o the work undertaken by t

pharmacies, they operate inormally and are not recognise

public laws or policies. As these pharmacies are unregulated,

legitimacy is unclear and their access to local natural resources i

protected. Pacari Network aims to improve the recognition o t

pharmacies by providing training in best practices, sanitation

management o medicinal plants. Throughout this moderniza

process, the traditional ethos o the raizeiras is maintained. Re

and procedures have been recorded and rationalised, and rec

are still shared openly with community members in cases wher

remedy is sae enough and simple enough to be made at home

To date, one national educational course and six local educat

courses o approximately 200 hours o instruction each have b

provided to the raizeiras. One o the main results o these courses

the beginning o collective elaboration o criteria or quality co

or the preparation o remedies in community pharmacies. To d

these courses have trained 249 women and 28 men, contribu

to the technical and institutional strengthening o comm

organizations and the creation o the Sel-Regulation o Tradit

Medicine policy guide, outlined at length below.


7/13

7

Self-Regulation of traditional medicine

Compliance with the Brazilian Health Surveillance Agencys (ANVISA)

est manuacturing practices regulations is a costly process that

s designed to benet large pharmaceutical companies with the

esources to conduct efcacy studies or their products. This is a

rocess that most community-based groups such as the Pacari

Network cannot aord.

o overcome this challenge, Pacari Network developed its owntandards or ensuring sustainable harvesting and quality control

home-made drug production. This set o standards, called Sel-

egulation o Traditional Medicine, orms the basis or a 200-hour

ourse provided to local communities that trains them on the best

way to extract herbal plants without harming the environment,

nd on how to improve their manuacturing process. The policy is

omprised o three major saety principles.

he rst saety principle sets a standard or the quality o the plants

o be used in the preparation o traditional medicines. As part o the

mplementation o this principle, all 47 community organizations

nvolved have adopted sustainable harvesting techniques or native

lants.

he second principle calls or the adoption o best practices in the

reparation o traditional medicine. The criteria or these practices

were dened collaboratively between 39 community organizations,

nd aim to improve the structure and sanitary conditions o

ommunity pharmacies where the remedies are prepared. This

s achieved through strict hygienic practices and the precise

measurement and weighing o all materials used in the creation o

raditional remedies.

he third principle calls or the identication o traditional medicines

ounded on traditional knowledge passed between generations.his principle led to the development o a unique system or

ecording traditional knowledge, called the Pharmacopoeia o the

eople o the Cerrado, and a book o the same name that catalogues

he knowledge and remedies o some 262 healers involved in the

etwork.

The Pharmacopoeia of the People of the Cerrado

The Pharmacopoeia o the People o the Cerrado is a ramew

or registering and recording traditional knowledge associated

biodiversity. The system was adopted by local communities

traditional healers as a means o saeguarding their rights to ac

and use the Cerrados biodiversity, and is based on eld rese

carried out between 2001 and 2005 in the states o Minas Ge

Gois, Tocantins and Maranho. A book drawn rom the knowlegathered was published in 2009, authored by 262 raiz

representing community pharmacies. The book includes a we

o inormation on species identication, descriptions o w

plants can be ound and their ecological relationships, descript

o the parts o each plant that can be used in remedies, techniq

or sustainable collection, and inormation on medicinal uses

toxicity.

The Pharmacopoeia o the People o the Cerrado is intended

precursor to the development o a series o peoples pharmacopo

covering dierent biomes. Pacari Network sees the developm

o its Pharmacopeia as a political tool by which to achieve

social and political recognition o traditional medicine pract

by local communities and indigenous peoples. Furtherm

the Pharmacopoeia plays an important role in the preventio

biopiracy. Having a detailed account o the traditional medi

uses o plants endemic to the Cerrado asserts the rights o l

peoples to access and use their local biodiversity and associ

knowledge, and grants a degree o protection under internati

intellectual property laws.

Eco-friendly cosmetic products

Pacari Network has also supported the development o produc

chains, based on native plants, to create marketable productsgenerate local jobs and income. The network now markets a ra

o Pacari Cerrado eco-riendly cosmetics, made rom plants o

in the region. Oils rom the macaba, pequi, and gueroba plant

cold pressed by a women-led community agribusiness in Buri

Gois, using raw materials sustainably gathered by armers in

Serra Dourada region. Gueroba oil has a delicate ragrance

moisturizing properties, and is used to produce a range o body

moisturizing lotion, soaps and hair products.

The importance of biodiversity is an everyday fact of life for ordinary people. As such, governme

officials must effectively promote the full participation of indigenous and local communities

both the processes of developing strategic plans for the conservation of biodiversity and in th

application of financial resources mobilized for their implementation.

Ms. Lourdes Cardozo Laureano, Coordinator, Pacari Network


8/13

8

Impacts

BIODIVERSITY IMPACTS

ince the 1960s, the Cerrado has experienced increasing

environmental degradation as large swaths o orest are cleared

o grow soy, raise cattle, or or eucalyptus plantations (see below.)

This large-scale conversion to agriculture is devastating or the

ich biodiversity o the Cerrado, and also threatens the livelihoods

nd traditions o communities and healers that rely on the

natural resources o the Cerrado or their daily needs. As such, the

preservation o the regions biodiversity and the wellbeing o its

raditional communities are intricately connected. The communities

nvolved in the Pacari Network recognise this and have taken a

number o steps to ensure that their activities have minimal impacton medicinal plants in the wild.

One such step was to identiy species o ora most in danger o

extinction in the Cerrado so that special care could be given to

hese plants. Working rom the comprehensive list o 264 distinct

plant varieties identied in the Pharmacopoeia, Pacari Network

established a set o criteria or identiying the ten most threate

species o ora. This set o criteria includes plants that mus

uprooted upon collection and plants that are in high comme

demand. Three o the most endangered species identied wEchinodorus macraphyllum, used to treat hypertension

inammation; Macrosyphonia velame, whose xylopodium are

or treating inammatory conditions; and Peritassa camp

whose seed oil is used to treat u, pain and rheumatism. Base

this identication, Pacari Network established guidelines o

monitoring and sustainable harvesting o these plants.

Aside rom promoting the sustainable harvesting o medi

plants, Pacari Network seeks to protect other natural resources to make cosmetics. With Pacaris support, two communities

developed and implemented pilot environmental managem

plans or the protected reserves that house their commun

sustainably managing a total o 120 acres within protected are

the Cerrado. Other community organizations have ocussed on

sustainable harvesting o native palm tree oil (gueroba, or Sya

oleracea Becc.) or use in cosmetic products that are sold as air t

products. In 2010-2011, palm ruits were sustainably harve

rom 18 properties belonging to armers owning approxim

20 hectares o land each, incentivizing the preservation o a

biodiversity throughout a total area o 360 hectares in the reg

The promotion o community pharmacies, each with their

medicinal plant garden, also reduces the volume o plants that be harvested rom the wild.

SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACTS

Women and marginalized groups

The promotion o traditional medicine is an eective

o supporting the socioeconomic inclusion o margina

communities and indigenous peoples, oten the main ho

o traditional knowledge. In this context, Pacari Network b


9/13

ogether community organizations representing our indigenous

peoples (the Xakriab, Patacho, Arana and Pankararu), and three

Aro-Brazilian groups rom the communities o Cedro, Buraco

and Jenipapo. The training opportunities oered to community

organizations, and the opportunities or participation in the

management o Pacari Network are extended equally to these social

groups.

Pacari Network is approximately 90 per cent women, many o

whom benet rom employment opportunities in the community

pharmacies. Those wishing to become involved in the communitypharmacies are required to undergo 200 hours o class to learn best

practices in the use and management o medicinal plants o the

Cerrado. These courses, based on the Sel-Regulation o Traditional

Medicine guidelines set by Pacari Network, have trained 249 women

and 28 men to date.

The development o the Popular Pharmacopoeia o the Cerrado was

another important training area or women, using the methodology

o popular research, whereby 262 representatives (60 per cent

o whom were women) conducted eld research, generating a

collective registry o traditional knowledge. The resulting book was

written using the eminine raizeiras rather than the more usual

raizeiros, in recognition o the majority contribution o women tohe project.

Healthcare, employment and income

Community pharmacies involved in the Pacari Network produce and

market an average o 40 dierent types o traditional remedies. These

pharmacies unction as sel-sustaining businesses that generate

obs and income or around ve women each, totalling over 120

women across the network. Their work benets an average o 7,300

ndividuals per month through community healthcare and provision

o traditional medicinal herbal remedies. As these remedies

requently sold at low cost or donated to those who cannot ao

pay, the community pharmacies represent an invaluable altern

to costly prescription drugs or poor community members.

In addition to medicines, some community organizations involv

Pacari Network have used their traditional knowledge to contri

to the networks line o natural cosmetics. The production o so

oils and body lotions derived rom gueroba oil has become a so

o employment and income or a number o women in va

Cerrado communities, while still taking special care to pres

the biodiversity o the region. The rst round o productionundertaken in 2008, using raw materials collected in 2007: 3,25

o the ruit generated 104 litres o oil, which was used to pro

our hundred 200 ml bottles o lotion. By 2012, the volum

gueroba harvested had increased to 15.5 tons, generating reve

o around USD 1,260 per month rom cosmetics sales.

The Pacari Network arranged the ofcial registry o the brand

acquired the necessary equipment or extracting gueroba oil

actively encourages the women involved to experiment and dev

new products. These cosmetics are currently being sold in ma

around the region o Serra Dourda, Gois, as well as online. The 2

2011 palm harvest generated an average income o around US

or 97 individuals, mainly women, involved in various stages oproduction cycle. Those harvesting the coconuts might expe

earn around USD 85, while those involved in cracking the coco

earn USD 70. Overall in 2010-2011, the average income per a

per crop, was USD 150. While this is still relatively low, the incom

greatly appreciated by harvesters, especially as the crop gene

income during the dry season, when the main livelihood activ

milk production does not generate any income. The network is

in the process o developing new marketing strategies with Cer

Central, a partner organization that aims to help reach new mar

in particular or Fair Trade products.

9


10/13

POLICY IMPACTS

wo major challenges aced by Pacari Networks members are the

marginalization o their work due to the lack o any national law

ecognizing the practice o traditional medicine, and the degradation

the Cerrado biome, leaving local communities without access

o native plants or the preparation o their traditional remedies.

o address these challenges, Pacari Network actively campaigns

or the recognition o the traditional medicine practices o rural

ommunities and indigenous peoples. The hope is that this will

vercome both challenges: that in achieving recognition o these

ractices, the rights o healers and communities to their local natural

esources will be recognized and saeguarded, which in turn will

ncourage the sustainable management o these resources. As it

tands, the current Brazilian policy or herbal medicine products is

ocused mainly on exotic plants. The government has made little

ort to date to promote the use o native Brazilian plants, side-

ning community-based initiatives like those represented by Pacari

Network.

Members o Pacari Network make a great eort to participate inhe development and implementation o Brazilian public policies

elated to local communities and to the conservation o the Cerrado,

nd particularly in trying to achieve a convergence o interests,

s these policies tend to be handled in a ragmented manner by

ierent ministries o the ederal government. Pacari Network

ctively encourages the participation o its members in the public

olicy sphere, providing updates on policy developments, preparing

roposals, and identiying community leaders to participate in

orums.

acari Network is a member o the National Policy Committee or

Medicinal Plants and Herbal Medicines, in which it represents the

Cerrado biome. The group has contributed signicantly to policiesstablished by the Committee, successully lobbying or the inclusion

a guideline that aims to increase the promotion and recognition

popular practices in the use o medicinal plants and home

emedies. Pacari Network is also a member o the National Policy

Commission or Sustainable Development o Indigenous Peoples

nd Traditional Communities, where it advocates or ensuring access

o health services that match the sociocultural characteristics o local

ommunities. Additionally, the group participated in the National

Commission on the Plan or a Sustainable Cerrado, coordinated by

he Ministry o the Environment, and contributed to drating the

ustainable Cerrado Programme, which implements policies or the

ustainable use o medicinal plants.

hrough its own work too, Pacari Network is developing a legal

ramework with the goal o ormulating specic legislation to govern

he use o popular and traditional medicinal plants. The central ocus

this ramework is ensuring local communities customary rights to

ractice the traditional medicine o the Cerrado are protected. Pacari

s also campaigning or the ormal recognition o the trade o the

aizeiras o the Cerrado as an element o intangible cultural heritage

nder Brazilian law. To this end, Pacari has developed a Protection

lan which aims to oster a partnership between government and

ommunities to protect this element o cultural heritage.

Key elements o the plan include:

1. Support or the transer o knowledge to younger genera

through the creation o the Peoples University o the Cerr

Work towards this has already begun through the provisio

extensive training to traditional healers.

2. Development o specic legislation or the use o popular

traditional medicinal plants.

3. Recognition o traditional healers and raizeiras right to determination.

4. Continued development o the Pharmacopoeia o the Peop

the Cerrado.

5. The inclusion o home remedies in the local market and thro

direct sales by raizeiras.

6. Strengthening o sel-organization o the Cerrado raizeiras

healers.

7. Adoption o eective action to preserve the Cerrado b

through its sustainable use.

8. Protection o the collective rights oraizeiras and their tradit

knowledge associated with the use o the biodiversity o

Cerrado.

9. Demarcation o areas or the community collection o medplants (i.e. extractive reserves or raizeiras.)

The Pharmacopoeia is also a tool or inuencing policy, as it has

used to drive orward the social recognition o traditional med

practiced by local communities and indigenous peoples.

Pharmacopoeia was recognized by the Ministry o the Environm

as a technical tool or the implementation o the Conventio

Biological Diversity (CBD) in Brazil; the book includes a orew

by the Secretary or Biodiversity and Forests at the Ministry o

Environment.

The group has also done much to increase the visibility o Cerrad

and led an application requesting that the Art o the Cerrado

recognized as part o Brazils Cultural Heritage o a Spiritual Na

at the Institute o Historical and Artistic Heritage o the Minist

Culture. The goal was to ensure the preservation o the art o he

itsel, urther helping to maintain the continuity o the trans

traditional knowledge associated with biodiversity.

Pacari Network also believes it is important to be inor

about relevant international agreements to strengthen its p

involvement. In this context, the network was represented

member o the Brazilian delegation to the Tenth Conerenc

the Parties (COP 10) to the Convention on Biological Diversi

Nagoya, Japan, 2010. Pacari Network also requested accreditaas an advisory organization to the Intergovernmental Comm

or the Saeguarding o Spiritual Cultural Heritage o the Un

Nations Educational, Scientic and Cultural Organization (UNES

Pacari Network intends to ask that the Art o Healers be inclu

in UNESCOs Urgent Saeguarding List and that the Po

Pharmacopoeia o the Cerrado be named as a Good Saeguar

Practice. Receiving the Equator Prize 2012, meanwhile, prov

great visibility or Pacari Networks work at the international

and has had benecial repercussions or Pacaris work, especia

contributing to public policy ormulation.

10


11/13

11

Sustainability and Replication

SUSTAINABILITYince its inception in 1999, Pacari Network has received support

rom a number o organizations and government agencies to carry

ut activities such as meetings, exchanges, courses, and research,

nd to produce publications. The main sustainability strategy o the

roup relies on decentralization and preserving the autonomy o the

ommunity organizations that comprise it. This way, even i there is

ot enough unding or a collective project, individual community

rganizations continue to exist and may carry out projects and

xchanges among themselves. For example, the community

harmacies represented in the Pacari Network continue to unction

s individual, sel-sustaining businesses. The continued provision oapacity building in various elds is critical to ensuring this, however.

he autonomy o these community organizations is evident in their

ndividual abilities to create and market their traditional medicines.

en o these community organizations have taken the initiative in

aising their own unds to manage projects, which has improved

oth their capacity or production and their visibility, and has given

hem the opportunity to share their knowledge with other groups.

Pacari Network aims to urther expand its sustainability strategi

developing products under the label Pacari Cerrado Eco-Prod

that would be well-suited to the Fair Trade market. One such exa

o this is their line o palm oil-based cosmetics. This strate

being developed in partnership with the Central Cooperative o

Cerrado, and Pacari Network hopes to soon expand the marketi

these products and involve more community organizations.

REPLICATION

Pacari Network seeks to expand its work and messagin

communities working in other biomes outside the Cerrado thaalso working to preserve traditional knowledge and advoca

or their right to practice traditional medicine. This ambition

reected in the creation o a national network, ormed during

Peoples Summit alongside the UN Conerence on Sustain

Development (Rio+20) in 2012, called the Biomes Medical Netw

This network is comprised o ve community-based initia

representing ve dierent biomes o Brazil: the Cerrado savan

the Pantanal wetlands, the Atlantic Forest, the Caatinga shrub

and the Pampas plains. The primary goals o this network a

ollows: to inuence public policies to ensure the customary r

o local communities to practice traditional medicine; to advo

or specic legislation on the use o traditional medicinal plan

achieve legal recognition o traditional remedies as valid commhealth practices; and to record the traditional uses o medi

plants in the orm o popular pharmacopoeias. The plan is or

biome to ormulate its own pharmacopoeia, modelled ater Pa

Cerrado example.

Pacari Network also makes an eort to promote knowle

exchange through meetings and workshops at the local, regi

and international levels. One such event, the Fourth Annual Mee

o Midwives and Healers o the Cerrado, was attended by some

people. The network also requently presents its work at governm


12/13

1212

nd civil society events. For instance, it recently participated in a

ational Meeting or Dialogue and Convergence o Agroecology,

nvironmental Health and Justice, at which more than 300 amily

armers were present. The Pacari Networks community pharmacies,

meanwhile, are regularly visited by other community groups,

chools, universities and NGOs; our o these pharmacies recently

eceived visits rom representatives rom the Uruguayan Centre or

uitable Technologies (CEUTA).

PARTNERS

he Pacari Network has partnered with a number o organizations

working in the Cerrado biome, including:

The Institute or Society, Population and Nature (ISPN) (national

host institution or the UNDP-implemented Global Environment

Facility Small Grants Programme (SGP)): Pacari Network has

had several community projects approved by the SGP, and

received a grant o USD 50,000 to help und its work. This grant

was essential or strengthening linkages among the various

community organizations that orm the network. Several o

these community groups have used these unds to implement

small, independently managed projects related to the traditional

use and sustainable management o medicinal plants native

to the Cerrado, as well as to conduct research and or product

development in their community pharmacies. Pacari Network

provided these community organizations with guidance and

technical advice. The ISPN also provides advice and support to

the Pacari Networks Sel-Regulation o Traditional Medicine

policy project.

The Lutheran Foundation o Diakonia (FLD): FLD is an entity

linked to the Evangelical Lutheran Church that works incommunity development, supporting groups and projects

throughout Brazil. FLD supports the Pacari Network through a

project ocussed on institutional strengthening.

The Central Cooperative o the Cerrado: This cooperative o

community organizations assists communities in gaining access

to the Fair Trade market. Currently the cooperative is assisting

35 community organizations to develop income-generating

activities rom the sustainable use o biodiversity o the Cerrado.

Products include oods, crats, cosmetics and vegetable oils.

Ecumenical Coordination o Services (CES): CES is a cooper

entity that operates throughout Brazil supporting commu

organizations that work in community development,

Trade, the sustainable use o biodiversity, education o chil

and youth, and social entrepreneurship. CES supported

Pacari Network in two projects that aided in the creation

publication o the Pharmacopoeia o the People o the Cerr

The Secretariat o Family Agriculture o the Ministry o AgraDevelopment (SAF/MDA): The Secretariat o Family Agricu

supports the Pacari Networks gueroba venture, used in

manuacture o cosmetics and other natural products.

The Association o Small Farmers and Assistance to M

in Turmalina (APLAMT): This association provides techn

logistical and managerial support or projects being carried

by the community organizations represented by Pacari Netw

Cerrado Network: This civil society was instrumental in

creation o the Pacari Network, which in turn continues to

an active role within it (Pacari was recently elected to a

coordinator role within the Cerrado Network.) The network b

together civil society organizations working or the promo

o sustainable development and conservation o the Cerr

More than 300 organizations are represented, including

workers, gatherers, indigenous peoples, quilombolas, raize

coconut breakers, and shermen, among others. The dive

o its membership is undoubtedly the networks greatest as

In 2002, Pacari Network was given critical support by

Network o Medicinal Plants o the Southern Cone (or Cone

the geographic region composed o the southernmost are

South America) supported by the International Developm

Research Centre (IDRC). Other networks Pacari has worked include the Exchange Network or Alternative Technolo

(Rede de Intercmbio de Tecnologias Alternativas) base

Belo Horizonte, and the Medicinal Plants Network o S

America. A partnership is currently being developed with

Green House, a Brasilia-based NGO that manages public u

or projects carried out with the ederal government.

Policy makers in Brazil must act responsibly and ethically to safeguard the immense cultura

and environmental heritage of our country, especially with regard to legislation relating

protected areas, and guaranteeing the right to free, prior and informed consent, so that th

country may become worthy of exercising leadership in the field of biodiversity conservation an

open dialogue with the public about the strategic plan for biodiversity

Ms. Lourdes Cardozo Laureano, Coordinator, Pacari Network


13/13

Click the thumbnails below to read more case studies like this:

Equator Initiative

Environment and Energy GroupUnited Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

304 East 45th Street, 6th Floor

New York, NY 10017

Tel: +1 646 781-4023

www.equatorinitiative.org

UNDP partners with people at all levels o society to help build nations that can withstand crisis, and drive and sustain the

o growth that improves the quality o lie or everyone. On the ground in 177 countries and territories, we oer global pers

ive and local insight to help empower lives and build resilient nations.

The Equator Initiative brings together the United Nations, governments, civil society, businesses and grassroots organizati

o recognize and advance local sustainable development solutions or people, nature and resilient communities.

2013 by Equator Initiative

All rights reserved

FURTHER REFERENCE

Pacari Network website: http://www.pacari.org.br/

Pharmacoepia o the People o the Cerrado: http://www.pacari.org.br/armacopeia-popular-do-cerrado/livro-armacopeia-pop

do-cerrado/

Pacari Network. Magical moisturizing beauty products made rom Gueroba. Produced with the UNDP-implemented Global Env

ment Facility Small Grants Programme and progreso network. http://www.biodiversity-products.com/media/documents/product

4c0b298e54508200e58aaec7b49d8.pd
http://www.pacari.org.br/http://www.pacari.org.br/farmacopeia-popular-do-cerrado/livro-farmacopeia-popular-do-cerrado/http://www.pacari.org.br/farmacopeia-popular-do-cerrado/livro-farmacopeia-popular-do-cerrado/http://www.pacari.org.br/farmacopeia-popular-do-cerrado/livro-farmacopeia-popular-do-cerrado/http://www.pacari.org.br/farmacopeia-popular-do-cerrado/livro-farmacopeia-popular-do-cerrado/http://www.pacari.org.br/http://www.equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/com_winners/casestudy/case_1348164157.pdfhttp://www.equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/winners/93/casestudy/case_1370356358.pdfhttp://www.equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/winners/103/casestudy/case_1370356422.pdf

case studies undp: pacari network, brazil

Documents