National Institute for the Social and Cultural Development of the Countryside – Cultivar Institute

This project aims to strengthen the fight for decent work and Human Rights in the Agrarian Reform areas of the Northeast, Amazon and Center-West regions, ensuring that rural workers know and access their rights. The initiative will directly benefit the population that lives and works in these lands, promoting actions that engage with local reality and bolster collective organization. In that manner, the project aims to contribute to the dignity of these communities, assuring just living conditions, access to essential goods, and the maintenance of balance with nature.

After six years of dismantling of public policies geared towards small-scale agriculture, human rights, and gender equality, the Cultivar Institute evaluates that this change in government has brought a more favorable scenario for the advancement of these agendas. This moment represents a strategic opportunity to strengthen the fight for Agrarian Reform, to reestablish dialogues with public organs, and to restart institutional partnerships, especially in the face of the reduction to international funding for philanthropy. Nonetheless, there are still significant challenges such as the criminalization of human rights defenders and the need to expand policies aimed towards agroecological production, social inclusion, and access to land. 

The Cultivar Institute is an organization committed to the quality-of-life improvement for rural households in Agrarian Reform settlements, promoting agroecology, the strengthening of productive chains, and the defense of rights for the rural population. Its operations comprise initiatives aimed towards sustainable production, environmental recovery, access to land, and generation of income, always with an emphasis in social justice and inclusion of women, youths, and the LGBTQIA+ population. Moreover, the Institute develops actions of advocacy to strengthen public policies aimed towards the Agrarian Reform, small-scale agriculture, and human rights, coordinating with governmental institutions and social movements in order to guarantee the protection and promotion of rural workers’ rights.