REGIONAL COMMODITY PROGRAMMES
Women play a pivotal role in cotton growing. Their wellbeing and understanding of best practices is vital to the success of Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) cotton. Solidaridad has increased the number of women participating and in leadership roles in China through ongoing BCI projects.
The Chaco is experiencing the most rapid deforestation of any ecosystem in South America. Solidaridad North America, in partnership with Solidaridad South America, is in the process of rallying local and supply chain stakeholders in support of an alternative development path for the region’s livestock sector.
The Chaco is experiencing the most rapid deforestation of any ecosystem in South America. Solidaridad North America, in partnership with Solidaridad South America, is building consensus to support an alternative development path for the livestock sector.
Palm oil smallholders in Indonesia are struggling to keep pace with the growing global demand. Average yields for the country’s 1.5 million smallholders are 2.5 metric tonnes per hectare, compared to the national average of 4 tonnes. Increasing productivity has the potential to double their income without causing deforestation.
EXTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS
An ever-increasing number of North American companies are making public commitments to sustainable sourcing. For example, major corporations including Walmart, Johnson and Johnson, and McDonalds pledged to cut tropical deforestation due to agricultural production by 50% by 2020 and stop it entirely by 2030. A lot of media attention has also been generated by the projected shortage of cocoa and the plight of smallholder cocoa farmers, leading to new supply chain commitments.
As companies work to implement these commitments by 2020, they are looking to Solidaridad for guidance and assistance.
RESULTS AND PARTNERSHIPS
Solidaridad’s main role in North America is to develop partnerships. In close cooperation with the network’s global supply chain teams and regional expertise centres, we work to identify opportunities to increase the sustainability of over 12 supply chains and mobilize resources to achieve measurable results.
For example, we are working on the development of a sustainable landscape approach in the Gran Chaco region of Argentina and Paraguay, to create beef and soy supply sources that will improve agricultural productivity while reducing deforestation.
In Indonesia, we are designing a pilot project to improve smallholder palm oil production and reduce their impact on forests and peat bogs.
DONORS AND ORGANIZATIONS
We are working with The Walmart Foundation to support the development and training of female cotton farmers in China, as a complement to other projects undertaken under the auspices of the Better Cotton Initiative.
In partnership with the Earth Innovation Institute — and with funding from the Norwegian Development Agency (NORAD) — we implemented the second year of a Farms, Forest and Finance Initiative that is designed to decouple agriculture and deforestation in Ghana and Paraguay.