The Sustainable Juruti Fund Pilot Program is part of the Sustainable Juruti Program, a model for local development in Juruti and surrounding areas. The program is financed by Alcoa, who established a large-scale bauxite extraction site in Juruti, which lies on the shores of the Amazon River in Pará state. The model uses a three-pronged intervention strategy that involves the following components:

The Sustainable Juruti Council (CONJUS) - The Council serves as an open, democratic forum for social actors to dialogue on local development priorities. It is based on the Agenda 21 model and is currently being formed under the direction of ISER.

Sustainable Development Indicators - An tool to monitor regional social, economic and environmental change in the area, created under the direction of FGV/Ces.

The Sustainable Juruti Fund (FUNJUS) - FUNJUS is the financial instrument of the local sustainable development programs created by Funbio. It invests in priority development areas as defined by the Sustainable Juruti Council, and uses the Sustainability Indicators to measure the impacts of supported projects and the main outcomes of the social and environmental funding.

The Sustainable Juruti Fund Pilot Program was established to fill the need for an organization with a dynamic, adaptive management style along with ideas and tools specially attuned to the specific Juruti needs. It received an initial donation of R$ 2 million from Alcoa and has timeframe of two years. Technical and administrative aspects of the Fund are handled by Funbio, under Alcoa’s supervision.

After the conclusion of the pilot phase, necessary changes will made to the model, such as establishing a legal status for the Fund. In addition, the Fund’s statute, regulations, main areas supported and funding priorities, among other things, may be revised.

The first call for projects for the Sustainable Juruti Fund Pilot Program was issued in May 2009, and support for selected projects is due to begin by January 2010.

Contacts:

Guilherme Figueiredo – Program Coordinator at Funbio
guilherme.figueiredo@funbio.org.br

Nícia Coutinho – Local FUNJUS Director
nicia.coutinho@funbio.org.br