The Territorial Regeneration Forum is making progress with investments in the Cerrado region.

The Territorial Regeneration Forum consolidates results, attracts investments, and aligns the Cerrado Mineiro region with global socio-environmental compliance metrics.

Organized by Cerrado das Águas, the meeting brought together rural producers, companies, researchers, public institutions, and market representatives to discuss climate, landscape, production, and mechanisms capable of enabling the regenerative transition of the territory.

On September 1st and 2nd, Patrocínio (MG) hosted the Territorial Regeneration Forum: Connecting Productive Systems in the Cerrado. The initiative was carried out by Cerrado das Águas. It consolidated a multi-sectoral governance aimed at addressing the severity of the climate in the biome, promoting the integration of water security, crop adaptation, and economic viability at the landscape scale .

The program was developed in two complementary phases. On the first day, at Espaço Cerrado, specialists, rural producers, researchers, companies, and representatives of public and private institutions structured diagnoses and restoration goals based on science. The following day, the Workshop for Investments in Territorial Regeneration, held at Fazenda Rainha da Paz, transformed the themes presented at the Forum into concrete actions in public policies, attracting impact capital via blended finance, and parametric agricultural insurance.

The Territorial Regeneration Forum 2026 is an initiative of Cerrado das Águas, with strategic support from Sebrae, WBCSD (World Business Council for Sustainable Development), the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, the Rabo Foundation, Embrapa Café, Fundaccer, and WWF.

Results from Panel 1: Vulnerability Analysis and Climate Risk Governance

The program for the 1st began with the lecture " Scenarios, risks and solutions to guarantee production in the face of global warming ", given by Marco Antonio Fujihara, a specialist in sustainability, governance and climate change.

The presentation contextualized how agronomic adaptation to temperature peaks and drought has ceased to be a secondary agenda and has become a central element of the financial solvency of coffee farming. The outcome of the debate indicated that monitored basins and auditable hydrological data are indispensable assets for mitigating the capital cost of farms.

Following that, in the panel “ The Importance of Landscape ,” the dialogue broadened the discussion beyond the boundaries of rural properties. Moderated by the CEO of Nature Invest, Michael Becker, the discussions were expanded with the experiences and knowledge of the panelists: Fabiane Sebaio, Executive Secretary of Cerrado das Águas; Leonardo Queiroz, environmental analyst and general coordinator of landscape management at the Ministry of the Environment; Argemiro Teixeira, researcher at INPE; Rodolfo Clímaco, representative of Nescafé and vice-president of Cerrado das Águas.

As a practical outcome of the meeting, the urgency of monitoring not only carbon, but also water resources and biodiversity was validated. The group confirmed the alignment of the Cerrado das Águas territorial metrics with the parameters of the TNFD (Task Force on Nature-related Financial Disclosures), preparing the coffee supply chain for the future requirement to measure its dependence on nature. It was also concluded that these indicators provide verifiable data required by the GRI (Global Reporting Initiative) reporting guidelines and position agribusiness in fulfilling its corporate commitments to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) undertaken by Brazil.

Results from Panel 2: Market differentiation, EUDR compliance and carbon market

The relationship between environmental integrity, origin differentiation, and new commercial demands was the theme of the panel “ Markets and Regenerative Production Systems ,” moderated by Marcelo Urtado, coffee grower and president of Cerrado das Águas. The panel brought together representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, Starbucks Brazil, the Delegation of the European Union in Brazil, and the Cerrado Coffee Growers Federation.

The panel resulted in an agreement on technical measures for end-to-end traceability and information governance. Participants concluded that compliance with EUDR (EU Regulation on Deforestation-Free Products) rules is a non-negotiable condition for ensuring the flow of exports to Europe without risk of sanctions.

During the breaks, the Forum also fostered closer ties between research and the territory through the presentation of academic works related to regeneration and coffee farming. The exhibition "Voices of Regeneration" provided a space for different experiences and perceptions of people involved in the transformation of the landscape. The event also provided an opportunity to showcase products from the region, such as coffee from the Cerrado Mineiro region, Cerrado cheese, traditional liqueurs, and the environmental awareness work carried out by the Vidas do Cerrado Scout Group.

"We believe that nobody does anything alone, or the results are less significant. And when we work together, with this multidisciplinary group, we have government, researchers, institutions, and producers working together, in a coordinated way with Cerrado das Águas, the impact on the environment and society is exponentially greater than isolated actions. So that's the proposal: the Territorial Regeneration Forum, and that's what Cerrado das Águas does. It acts in synergy between production and preservation. This is important because not only here, but also abroad, wherever our coffee goes, which is our main product, there is this concern about how it is produced and this care for the environment ," said Marcelo Urtado.

Resources and tools to enhance the transition

In the afternoon, the debate moved on to the mechanisms necessary for the implementation and expansion of regenerative actions. Angélica Rotandaro, representative of the Rabo Foundation, presented a funding line focused on water resilience, bridging the gap between environmental challenges and the possibilities of accessing financial resources.

Alexander Van Parys, Operations Director at Ecomatrix, presented tools to support the transition on a territorial scale, highlighting the importance of planning, monitoring results, and integration between different actors and properties.

The final panel of the day, "Impacts of the regenerative transition on production resilience," brought together perspectives from research, the market, organizations linked to sustainable agriculture, and those already leading changes on rural properties, including representatives from JDE Peet's, Embrapa, Volcafe Brasil, and the Associated Group for Sustainable Agriculture (GAAS), as well as the experience of a rural producer from Cerrado das Águas.

The panel addressed the environmental, productive, and economic impacts of the regenerative transition, the potential of agroforestry systems for coffee farming, the economic viability of new practices, and the optimization of natural resources. The experience of rural producer Cássia dos Anjos, from the PIPC (Conscious Producer Investment Program), brought the discussion closer to the reality of the field, presenting lessons learned and challenges related to implementing an agroforestry system on her property.

The discussions showed that the regenerative transition must be built from the reality of each producer, combining technical knowledge, economic viability, monitoring, and access to mechanisms that reduce the risks of change.

Workshop delves into pathways for investments.

On September 2nd, the program continued at Fazenda Rainha da Paz with the Workshop for Investments in Territorial Regeneration. Organized by Cerrado das Águas in partnership with WBCSD, the activity brought together rural producers, funders, companies, and institutions to discuss how to enable regenerative transition at the landscape scale.

The visit to the property allowed participants to observe the territory from the perspective of the productive and environmental reality of the farm, which has been investing in regenerative practices for 20 years, connecting the concepts presented at the Forum to the challenges faced in the field.

The first working group addressed public policies and concrete opportunities for regenerative transition based on the Cerrado das Águas investment case. Results from interviews with funders and lessons learned from the Brazil 320 initiative, gained through engagement with rural producers, were presented.

In the second stage, participants were divided into groups to discuss financial instruments and rural insurance. The activity facilitated the exchange of experiences and the identification of mechanisms that can make investments more accessible, reduce risks, and encourage the adoption of regenerative practices.

The program concluded with a session dedicated to sharing the reflections developed during the working groups. The producers' participation reinforced that any investment strategy needs to consider the real conditions of the properties, the time required for the transition, the risks assumed by those who produce, and the environmental benefits generated for society as a whole.

Collective construction for a more resilient territory.

By bringing together scientific knowledge, public policies, market insights, funding, and practical experience over two days, the Territorial Regeneration Forum strengthened the construction of a shared agenda for the Cerrado region of Minas Gerais.

The meeting highlighted that expanding regeneration depends on a combination of technical assistance, appropriate financial instruments, public policies, business commitment, producer support, and mechanisms capable of recognizing the ecosystem services generated on rural properties.

With this initiative, Cerrado das Águas reaffirms its role as a facilitator of different sectors and as a driver of solutions that connect water conservation, agricultural production, biodiversity, climate resilience, and territorial development in the Cerrado Mineiro region.