PPA Call attracts more than twice as many applications in 2019
The 2019 Call for Proposals of the Partnership Platform for the Amazon (PPA) received 201 applications, more than twice as many as the 2018 edition, which featured 81 participants. Of this total, 36 qualified for the next stage, which includes interviews and visits to project sites.
Promoted by the PPA under the coordination of IDESAM, and with technical support by Pipe Social, the Call will select projects to participate in a business round with investors. Successful applicants will receive financial inputs of up to R$ 800,000, and will be invited to join the PPA Acceleration Program, which includes face-to-face training on select topics; customized mentoring; co-working; legal, accounting, marketing and branding support; as well as grants towards the cost of attending training programs and events.
Anna Tonnes, USAID/Brazil Environment Team Leader, believes that the increased number of applicants is a clear sign that the impact business environment is thriving, and that entrepreneurs are seeking new opportunities: “There have always been concerns about whether such initiatives would make sense in remote areas such as the Amazon. The results are there, and the answer is a clear "yes". For USAID/Brazil, it is a privilege to be part of the PPA and to contribute, through the PPA Business Call, to the sustainable development of the Amazon and the conservation of its biodiversity”.
Eligible participants included entrepreneurs, start-ups, organizations, community-based businesses, people networks/collectives, institutions and companies in their early stages of development focused on protecting the forest, valuing biodiversity and promoting sustainable development in the Amazon.