Sustainable Juruti Fund
In May 2009 Alcoa, its local partners and the Brazilian Biodiversity Fund (FUNBIO) launched the Sustainable Juruti Fund (FUNJUS), which is structured to fund projects that promote improvements in the environmental conditions and quality of life of the population of Juruti, a small township in the west of Pará State, where Alcoa has a bauxite mining unit.
Launched on a provision basis, the Fund has an independent administration structure and an initial injection of funds from Alcoa. The Company will earmark R$ 2 million, of which R$ 500,000 will be used in this experimental phase that is planned to last for two years.
FUNBIO is responsible for the technical and administrative coordination of the Fund. In addition, a Fund Board has been set up, an independent body that is responsible for project governance and selection.
PUBLIC BID NOTICE
In the pilot phase FUNJUS launched a public bid notice for providing support for the projects of local civil organizations, or those that have their headquarters in Pará. To encourage participation by Juruti society the public bid notice provides a special line of financing for the projects of community organizations that are not formalized, but whose activities are recognized. Public institutions can be partners, but not bidders. The selection process includes technical support for preparing the proposals and at the end the selected institutions will receive training in how to carry out their projects.
Initiatives will be supported with investments of R$ 10,000 to R$ 50,000, which can be used over a period of up to 18 months. The Fund’s pilot-phase experiences will serve to better adjust the funding mechanism to the conditions that pertain in Juruti.
SUSTAINABILITY TRIPOD
The Fund forms part of the Sustainable Juruti Project and aims to meet the needs of the sustainability tripod for regional development: respect for the environment, social responsibility and economic success. Implementation of this model, which was identified as one of the aspirations of the Juruti community itself, is an Alcoa voluntary initiative to add to all the other actions that are currently on-going and that result from the legal requirements for setting up the Juruti Mine (Environmental Control Plans, Collective Compensation Matrix of the Socó I Settlement) and to the other voluntary Company initiatives in benefit of the local community (Positive Agenda).
The Project is already working successfully. Besides the Sustainability Indicators System, developed with support from the Getulio Vargas Foundation and the Sustainable Juruti Fund, the Project also receives support from the Sustainable Juruti Council, a public arena for dialogue between the various parties who have a stake in local development.
The indicators should constitute the bases for supporting the Council’s decision-making, which in turn provides the Fund with guidance on investment priorities and financial support. Each component of the Project has the active participation of representatives of civil organizations, local public authorities and companies.
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