At the invitation of our GPC members in Brazil, Peggy Dulany led an excursion to Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.
The visit provided three days of learning experiences including visits with cutting-edge programs such as the Instituto Rio community foundation, one of Synergos' new partner projects, and Instituto Multiplicar, an organization that helps to diminish Brazil's unemployment founded by GPC members Daniel Dantas and Veronica Dantas.
The group also spent time with Brazilian GPC member Lucia Moreira-Salles, President of Riovoluntário, a non-governmental organization which improves the quality of day care for children from newborns to four years old and other philanthropic leaders. These included Sergio Amoroso, CEO of the Orsa Group and creator of the Orsa Foundation which helps children and young people in high-risk personal and social situations to play a part in society as fully-integrated citizens, and John Michael Forgách, whose investment firm A2R supports sustainable development. Mr. Forgách was also instrumental in the creation of the Brazilian Institute for Education in Sustainable Business, which provides training and other support to small, emerging indigenous companies.
John Michael Forgách informs us that after the GPC gathering in Brazil, he and GPC member Sérgio Amoroso have collaborated on several exciting initiatives:
Education -- On May 28, 2002, Fundação Orsa and IBENS signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to explore joint investment opportunities for the development of digital divide schools and the implementation of sustainable development education programs in the former D.K. Ludwig Amazon areas of Jari in Amapá and Pará.
Forest Management -- On July 8, 2002 John and Sérgio will travel with the first due diligence team to start survey work on a forest management project in Jari (the largest single private forest land holding in the Amazon -- 410.000 Ha).
Clean Energy Production -- A2R and Grupo Orsa are also working on an MOU to explore joint venture investment opportunities in sustainable forest management, alternative energy and biodiversity enterprises in the Amazon region of the Jari project.
We've put together a collection of 17 pictures from the events in Rio and São Paulo.
The trip agenda is online (PDF).