Smart Forests is a project organized by Facens University Center which brings together university students, the private sector and forest communities to develop intelligent solutions for the conservation of forests and their biodiversity, in addition to improving the quality of life of communities in the Amazon and the Atlantic Forest.
Throughout the editions held since 2022, the project received international recognition, with emphasis on the Global Education Awards, maximum recognition from QS Reimagine Education 2024, besides having been Gold Winner in the “Sustainability in Education Action” category. No QS Reimagine Education Awards 2023 was Bronze Winner in the “Sustainability Education” category and it was also winner in the “Benefitting Society” category of the Green Gown Awards 2023.
Eprevious editions
1st edition
In the first edition, in 2022, the project included students from Centro Universitário Facens, CESUPA – Centro Universitário do Estado do Pará and Centro Universitário Newton Paiva and had as its theme access to drinking water and met and met five United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Health and well-being; Clean water and sanitation; Clean and affordable energy; Industry, innovation and infrastructure and Sustainable cities and communities.
Among the participating students, 12 teams presented their ideas during a Hackathon that took place in May. The three teams that achieved the best results in the Hackathon went to the finals and received seed capital worth R$3 each. The finalist teams were able to prototype their solutions, and all the students traveled to Sorocaba to use the Facens laboratories and test the efficiency of their solutions. After that, they all traveled to Belém to implement and monitor their projects together with the riverside community of Ilha do Combu. In October, the final results of the implementation were presented to the Sponsors and the winning team received a prize of R$5. This edition was supported by Alcoa, Reservas Votorantim and Prysmian Group.
2st edition
The 2023 edition took place through the union of the Facens University Center, CESUPA – University Center of the State of Pará, University center Newton Paiva and UNDB –, with the objective of developing intelligent and high-impact solutions to generate or enhance community income through the Bioeconomy and met three United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Decent work and economic growth, Sustainable cities and communities and Responsible consumption and production.
The challenge was launched to 15 teams formed by students from the four institutions and included, for the first time, implementation stages in two biomes. The first, the Atlantic Forest, in Tapiraí (SP), in conjunction with the local rural workers' association, and the second, in the Amazon biome, on Cotijuba Island, in Belém (PA), in the Women's Movement of the Islands of Belém (MMIB).
The teams presented their ideas during a Hackathon that took place in May and the three teams that obtained the best results went to the final stage and each received seed capital worth R$8 to prototype their projects.
In July, all the students traveled to Sorocaba to use the facilities of the Facens laboratories and test the efficiency of their prototypes, and went to Tapiraí to implement the solutions in the Atlantic Forest. They then traveled to Belém to implement and monitor their projects with the community of Cotijuba Island. Between August and October, the efficiency and impact of the solutions were analyzed. In October, the teams presented their results and the winning team received a prize of R$5. The winning solution presented in Tapiraí consisted of the creation of an intelligent irrigation system, with electricity generated by solar energy, to facilitate the daily planting of the association. For Cotijuba Island, the solution developed consisted of a tool that facilitated the collection of fruit from tall trees, a practice rarely carried out in the community because it is composed primarily of women and children, where the task of harvesting is normally delegated to men.
Smart Forests in 2023 had the support of Alcoa, Reservas Votorantim, Prysmian Group and Toyota.
3st edition
In 2024, university students from the Facens University Center and from CESUPA – University Center of the State of Pará, formed the Jambu and Juçara teams and developed two solutions: the automated shredder in the Amazon and the smart greenhouse in the Atlantic Forest. The interdisciplinary groups brought together students from the Law, Production Engineering, Psychology, Computer Science and Engineering, Chemical Engineering and Systems Analysis and Development courses from the university centers, involved in all stages of the projects, from conception to implementation on Cotijuba Island, in the state of Pará, and in Miracatu, in São Paulo.
The project addressed three United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Decent work and economic growth, Sustainable cities and communities, and Responsible consumption and production. This edition featured the support from Alcoa, Reservas Votorantim, Munskjö and Veolia.
Follow all the project news at: https://florestasinteligentes.org.br