Swathes of tropical forests and other critical ecosystems are being cleared across the globe to make way for the production of cattle, soy, palm oil and other key commodities. This is putting global supply chains, economic growth and the environment at significant risk.
The Tropical Forest Alliance (TFA), hosted by the World Economic Forum, brings together 180 partners – including major corporations, governments, civil society organisations and financial institutions – to collectively address this issue in key agricultural markets, such as China, Brazil and Indonesia.
Since September 2022, Blakeney has worked with TFA to raise awareness of the need for nature-based solutions and an end to commodity-driven deforestation.
Whilst there’s been progress from supply chain actors to address conversion and deforestation, the Forest500 shows that most companies that have set net-zero commitments aren’t on track to meet them. Climate-related narratives aren’t cutting through and driving the necessary action to turn the dial on ecosystem destruction.
To resolve this issue, Blakeney has worked with TFA to develop a new narrative around the economic benefits of safeguarding nature which resonates more with CEOs, CFOs and other key decision-makers.
This formed the basis of a communications campaign advocating for a new approach to food production in the critical Cerrado biome.
In just four decades, the Cerrado biome has undergone a major transformation, evolving from a mass of tropical hinterlands into Brazil’s agricultural epicentre. But this has come at a high environmental cost, with half the region’s vegetation being wiped out and over 30 million hectares of land being depleted.
Despite the ongoing damage to this critical ecosystem and economic powerhouse, the Cerrado has been largely left out of media and policy conversations around deforestation and conversion, overshadowed by coverage of the Amazon rainforest.
This is having a detrimental impact, with deforestation rates in the Cerrado surging by 43% in 2023 compared to a 50% decrease in the Amazon according to government data. If the destruction of the Cerrado continues, the ecosystems that Brazil’s soy, cattle, sugarcane and corn depend on will suffer, causing worldwide food shortages and extensive economic damage.
Blakeney worked with the World Economic Forum, Systemiq (report authors) and our Brazilian strategic partner Profile to promote a report that evidenced the economic, environmental and socio-cultural importance of the Cerrado to regional and international audiences.
We distilled complex information from the report into clear and compelling messages tailored to different stakeholders, including policymakers, corporations, financial institutions, philanthropists and supply chain initiatives. This provided them with practical advice on how they can safeguard the Cerrado whilst simultaneously generating economic benefits from it.
The report garnered extensive coverage across Brazilian outlets, including Globo News – one of the country’s most influential channels – reaching an estimated 73 million people in the Brazil (a third of the country’s population). The report is being taken seriously in Brazilian ministries as they work on a strategy for the Cerrado.
Half of the world’s GDP is dependent on nature, but it’s often been confined to the sidelines at COP summits. That changed at COP28, with nature featuring as an important part of negotiations and food having its own dedicated day for the first time.
We provided support to TFA on the ground to help capitalise on the opportunities provided by this – securing interviews and quotes in critical international Tier 1 media, successfully maximising the impact of TFA’s advocacy.
Blakeney supported TFA at COP27 to ensure its Agriculture Sector Roadmap to reduce deforestation and conversion landed successfully.
We worked with some of the world’s biggest traders and producers to build a clear narrative and developed a full set of messaging assets for TFA and the Roadmap’s signatories, including sector-specific messages for cattle, soy and palm oil.
We then provided full media and message training for senior spokespeople, and the roadmap was warmly welcomed by key audiences.
IFACC – Innovative Finance for the Amazon, Cerrado and Chaco – is an initiative led by TFA, The Nature Conservancy, and the United Nations Environment Program that aims to scale-up deforestation-free finance mechanisms in commodity supply chains.
We support IFACC with their digital and media presence, and have introduced them to key trade journalists and grown their LinkedIn followers by 56% since the start of the year.
