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This report by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI/PUC-Rio) analyzes the characteristics of rural credit in the Brazilian Cerrado biome. It highlights a significant concentration of financial flows toward large producers and the expansion of soybean production, contrasting this with limited credit access for small and medium-sized family farmers. The study also notes a growing trend of private financing sources, although public banks continue to dominate the distribution of credit.

This policy brief by the Climate Policy Initiative analyzes the rural credit market in the Brazilian Cerrado biome, highlighting a significant concentration of financial flows toward large-scale producers and soy production, contrasted with limited credit access for small and medium-sized family farmers.

This 2021 report by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) provides a comprehensive analysis of the implementation of the Brazilian Forest Code (Law No. 12.651/2012) across Brazilian states. It focuses on the progress of the Rural Environmental Registry (CAR) and the Environmental Regularization Program (PRA), identifying significant bottlenecks in the analysis and validation of registries and the low rate of producer adherence to regularization programs. The report highlights disparities between states, noting that while registration is advanced nationwide, the transition to actual environmental recovery remains a major challenge.

This executive summary provides a 2021 snapshot of the implementation of Brazil's Native Vegetation Protection Law (Forest Code), specifically focusing on the Rural Environmental Registry (CAR) and the Environmental Compliance Program (PRA). While property registration is well-advanced nationwide, the report identifies significant bottlenecks in the analysis and validation of these registrations and a lack of producer interest in joining the PRA, leaving the final stage of environmental regularization as a major challenge across most states.

The report evaluates agricultural risk management in Brazil, finding that while the insurance market has grown, it remains highly concentrated and underfunded compared to rural credit. It highlights that nearly 60% of municipalities lack insurance and suggests redirecting public funds from credit to insurance and expanding the use of Agricultural Climate Risk Zoning (ZARC) to improve productivity and land use.

This research paper introduces a high-spatial-resolution bottom-up approach for quantifying greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in agricultural trade, applying it to Brazilian soy exports from 2010–2015 to demonstrate significant variability in carbon footprints based on origin and destination.

This 2020 report by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) analyzes the implementation of the Brazilian Forest Code (Law No. 12.651/2012) across Brazilian states, focusing on the Rural Environmental Registry (CAR) and the Environmental Regularization Program (PRA). It identifies significant disparities in progress, noting that while CAR registration is widespread, the analysis and validation phase remains a critical bottleneck. The report details state-level regulations for restoring Permanent Preservation Areas (APP) and Legal Reserves (RL), the role of the Brazilian Forest Service (SFB) in providing technological infrastructure, and the legal uncertainties surrounding the potential implementation of a Federal PRA.

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) analyzes the implementation of the Brazilian Forest Code (Law 12.651/2012) across Brazilian states, focusing on the Rural Environmental Registry (CAR) and the Environmental Regularization Program (PRA). It evaluates state-level regulations, the progress of CAR validation, and the operational status of PRAs, highlighting significant regional disparities in progress and the technical challenges facing state environmental agencies.

This research paper analyzes the economic impact of agricultural expansion in the Matopiba region of Brazil (Maranhão, Tocantins, Piauí, and Bahia) within the Cerrado biome. Finding that agricultural production accelerated after the late 1990s—driven by a shift toward soy—the study concludes that this expansion increased total GDP per capita by 11% relative to non-Cerrado areas, primarily through direct agricultural growth and indirect spillovers into the services sector. While access to electricity and durable goods (TVs, refrigerators) improved, the expansion had no significant effect on manufacturing GDP, migration, or educational attainment.

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative examines the social, economic, and environmental consequences of insecure rural land rights in Brazil. It identifies key drivers of instability, such as the 'social function of property' requirement and institutional complexity, and outlines obstacles to reform, including the lack of an integrated land database and the prevalence of illegal land grabbing (grilagem).

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) examines the insecurity of rural land property rights in Brazil, detailing the social, economic, and environmental costs of this instability and the institutional obstacles preventing its resolution.

This executive summary describes a study by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) and PUC-Rio's Núcleo de Avaliação de Políticas Climáticas, under the INPUT project, regarding the economic impacts of agricultural expansion in the MATOPIBA region of Brazil. The research focuses on the growth of grain production, specifically soy and corn, and its effects on local municipalities within the Cerrado biome compared to those outside it.

This policy brief analyzes the coherence of national development, conservation, and climate policies in Brazil, Colombia, and Peru using a water-energy-food (WEF) nexus approach. It identifies significant trade-offs between ambitious renewable energy and agricultural targets and the preservation of the Amazon biome's ecosystem services, which are critical for regional water, food, and energy security.

This research paper analyzes the drivers and socioeconomic impacts of agricultural expansion in the Matopiba region of Brazil between 1995 and 2012. The author finds that expansion was heavily concentrated in the Cerrado biome, driven by technological innovations in soil management and soy varieties. This shift led to significant increases in GDP per capita and improved access to basic consumer goods and electricity, though it had no significant effect on migration or educational investments.

This fact sheet by the Climate Policy Initiative and PUC-Rio examines the impact of property rights uncertainty in rural Brazil, highlighting how legal instability contributes to deforestation, violence, and economic inefficiency.

This infographic by the Climate Policy Initiative and PUC-RIO examines the insecurity of rural property rights in Brazil, detailing how poor titling and institutional complexity lead to violence, deforestation, and economic inefficiency.

This fact sheet by the Climate Policy Initiative describes research conducted by the Land Use Initiative (INPUT) regarding the agricultural expansion in the MATOPIBA region of Brazil. The document analyzes the economic and social consequences of increased soy and maize production, specifically comparing municipalities within the Cerrado biome to those outside it between the late 1990s and 2012.