Advancing Geospatial Monitoring for Ecosystem Restoration in Brazil

From July 28 to 30, the Brazilian Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (MMA), in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), and with the support of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and the Brazilian Coalition on Climate, Forests and Agriculture, held a national technical-scientific workshop in Brasília to advance the design of Brazil’s geospatial monitoring system for native vegetation recovery. The event took place at the ICMBio auditorium, and it was opened with remarks by Rita Mesquita, National Secretary for Biodiversity, Forests and Animal Rights, describing  the importance of monitoring the recovery of natural vegetation. The event brought together around 50 specialists, including representatives from governmental agencies, civil society, academia, and international organisations.

By contributing to the Cross-Cutting Strategy on Spatial Intelligence and Monitoring under the National Plan for Native Vegetation Recovery (PLANAVEG 2025–2028), the workshop plays a key role in Brazil’s commitment to restoring 12 million hectares of native vegetation by 2030. It also supports  the country’s international commitments, such as Target 2 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement of the UNFCCC.

Rejane Mendes, General Coordinator of Planaveg (MMA), presents the decision tree guiding Brazil’s national restoration monitoring system.

Participants included representatives from the Brazilian Forest Service (SFB), Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio), National Institute for Space Research (INPE), Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA), The Brazilian Restoration and Reforestation Observatory (ORR), Federal Indigenist Agency (FUNAI), among others, as well as experts from universities, civil society organisations, and international partners.

Organised within the framework of the AIM4NatuRe initiative, implemented by FAO with support from the United Kingdom, the workshop marked an important step in building a robust monitoring system aligned with both national goals and global restoration targets. Over three days, attendees engaged in a dynamic agenda of presentations, roundtables, and technical working groups. The discussions focused on:

Establishing baseline parameters and eligibility criteria for tracking areas in ecological restoration.

• Analysing data from key data sources such as TerraClass, SICAR, ORR, and Recooperar.
• Structuring the methodology to be used on the national monitoring system.
• Integrating databases to ensure consistency and avoid double-counting.
• Validating a technical decision matrix to support national reporting and guide restoration governance.

The interactive sessions enabled participants to collaboratively sharpen the methodological approach, map decision-making flows, and test data-integration scenarios across diverse biomes and land-tenure categories - strengthening the bridge between science, policy, and on-the-ground practice.

"This collaborative process is essential to ensure that Brazil's monitoring system reflects both scientific rigour and the realities of diverse territories,” said Rejane Mendes, Coordinator at the Department of Forests, MMA. “It also reinforces our capacity to track progress transparently and in alignment with international frameworks.”

The gathering marked a pivotal moment, forging deeper collaboration among ministries and partner institutions as they united to design robust monitoring tools that span multiple biomes and operate seamlessly across all levels of governance.

"What we’re building here is more than a system - it’s a pathway for scaling up restoration efforts with precision and accountability, ensuring real impact on the ground,” added Rubens Benini (TNC), the National Coordinator of Atlantic Forest Restoration Pact and co-leader of the Coalition Restoration Task Force.

The workshop directly contributed to building a shared vision of what constitutes restoration monitoring - not just in numbers, but also on ecological integrity and social inclusion. Outcomes from the discussions will provide methodological foundations for tracking Brazil’s restoration targets into the next decade.