Innovation Sprints

Acelen Renewables is combating global climate change with an innovative and impactful decarbonization solution for the aviation industry. By producing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from Macauba, a native Brazilian energy crop, Acelen Renewables is also rehabilitating 180,000 hectares of degraded pastures in Northeast Brazil. The company aims to produce 1 billion liters of SAF per year from 2027 and is developing the Acelen Agripark, an innovation center to advance Macauba domestication and commercial-scale production, with a capacity of 10 million seedlings annually. Backed by Mubadala Capital, this initiative starts with a $3 billion USD investment.

The COP28 Action Agenda on Regenerative Landscapes is co-chaired by COP28, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), and Boston Consulting Group and supported by the UN High-Level Climate Champions as well as by the International Fund for Agricultural Development, Global Methane Hub, and the World Farmers Organization. With a $2.2 billion USD investment, the partnership aggregates, accelerates, and amplifies existing efforts and new commitments from top food and agriculture players to transition large agricultural landscapes to regenerative agriculture by 2030. This initiative aims to translate commitments into tangible action and projects, benefiting people, climate, and nature.

The Partnerships for Climate Smart Commodities seeks to expand markets for America’s climate-smart commodities, leverage the greenhouse gas benefits of climate-smart commodity production, and provide direct, meaningful benefits to production agriculture, including for small and underserved producers. As America’s farmers and ranchers confront the challenges of climate change, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and its partners are working to provide the tools needed to build operational and environmental resiliency by implementing climate-smart production practices that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon, such as cover crops, no-till, nutrient, and manure management as well as pasture and forest management. Project partners span private, non-profit, and academic sectors, with nearly 100 universities, including over 30 minority-serving institutions, as well as collaboration with over 20 tribes and tribal groups. USDA has invested $3 billion USD across 135 pilot projects through this effort and anticipates an additional $1 billion USD in matching funds from project partners. This first-of-its-kind effort requires projects to: (1) Provide technical and financial assistance to producers to implement climate-smart production practices on a voluntary basis on working lands; (2) Pilot innovative and cost-effective methods for quantification, monitoring, reporting and verification of greenhouse gas benefits; and (3) Develop markets to promote the resulting climate-smart commodities. Visit the Partnerships for Climate Smart Commodities project dashboard to learn about the many organizations that contributed non-federal matching funds.

Varaha's innovation sprint aims to deliver $500 million USD in benefits to smallholder farmers in developing countries by 2025, integrating them into the global carbon market. This initiative will empower sustainable agriculture, improving livelihoods while removing 18 million tons of CO2 equivalent across 4 million acres. Leveraging remote sensing, machine learning, and biogeochemical models, Varaha will drive regenerative agriculture, agroforestry, and nature-based solutions to create scalable climate impact and effective carbon sequestration.

The Reverte program provides an integrated solution to recover degraded pastureland areas that involves regenerative agricultural practices, financial solutions, and input-use protocols that make available fertilizers, seeds, machinery, and pesticides for growing soy and other intercropped harvests in Cerrado, Brazil. The goal of restoring 1 million hectares of degraded pastureland by 2030 is a win-win for productivity, avoided emissions, conservation, and farmers' income. The second phase (2023-2025) aims to leverage $460 million USD to restore 255,000 hectares.

The PHYLA innovation sprint scales ecosystem restoration through climate resilient agroforestry, focusing on establishing elite Pongamia and biodiverse agroforestry systems across Sub-Saharan Africa. This initiative will regenerate land and communities while producing feedstocks for biofuel, plant-based proteins, and regenerative food and fiber crops. By collaborating with strategic technology, value chain and offtake partners, PHYLA Earth is pioneering a regenerative blended finance model to catalyze $400 million USD in new investment. The PHYLA innovation sprint transforms the traditionally competitive relationship between food security and energy securities into a highly symbiotic one.

ADM is powering sustainability across the industries in which they participate. With a total investment of $350.4 million USD, ADM’s efforts span their business and value chain and include enrolling 4 million acres of regenerative agriculture by 2025; investing broadly in fermentation technology that powers new plant-based products; a $350 million USD investment in feedstock for renewable diesel; and $400,000 USD in support for the Lifesaving Education and Assistance to Farmers (LEAF) Program in Kenya.

Atlas Agro’s innovation sprint will accelerate the expansion of our local, green nitrogen fertilizer production model with a commitment to have at least two facilities, one in the U.S. and one in Brazil, approved through final investment decision by the end of 2025. Our process uses renewable energy sources to produce green hydrogen, which will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 99% compared to traditional grey hydrogen production methods. The sprint is focused on establishing the first two sites in our global network of green nitrogen fertilizer facilities, fostering collaboration with key stakeholders, and developing strategies for farmer support and adoption. With a $325 million USD investment through this innovation sprint, we will expand our global reach and accelerate technology deployment.