About Courageous Land
Large-scale reforestation and conservation through agroforestry, meeting the growing demand for climate-positive food, ingredients, noble hardwood and carbon credits.
Tech
Agroforestry Intelligence Platform ™

Tech platform that provides a turn-key solution to partner farms, bringing ease to agroforestry planning, financing, operations and sales.

Reforestation
Agroforestry Landscape Hubs

We are a leading agroforestry manager and work with fellow land stewards to conserve and restore key regions through regenerative agroforestry systems that are optimized for biodiversity, carbon credits, organic production, and community income.

CL Agroforestry Inteligence Platform

With our platform, you can turn your farm into a profitable source of agroforestry products & carbon.

Plan and get financing for your agroforest.
Manage it professionally.
Sell agroforestry products and carbon credits.
CL Agroforestry

We are living through an unprecedented web of interconnected crises that include climate change, fatal health issues, loss of biodiversity, lack of income for rural communities, and inadequate climate-change preparation for humanity. Courageous Land’s mission is to reverse climate change while simultaneously creating health and abundance for all of life on Earth. Agroforestry can tackle all of the UN Sustainable Development Goals simultaneously, and we are passionate about scaling this solution as quickly as possible.

Agroforestry is a general term for systems that integrate cultivated trees and agriculture. This can range from relatively simple systems that have 2 kinds of species mixed together, to very complex systems that have many species and mimic a forest setting. Since 2011, we focus on scalable systems at the biodiverse end of the range. Our goal is to plant over 100,000 hectares of proprietary agroforests by 2030, plus a multiple of that through our platform.

Our agroforestry style is:
Biodiverse and Native

CL systems typically have 7-10 species. We prioritize native species, especially those at risk of extinction. We also actively measure biodiversity via E-DNA, and soon will explore Biodiversity Credits.

Tropical

We chose to launch operations in the tropics, where carbon sequestration rates are much higher than in colder regions.

Multi-strata

The key to optimizing both profit and carbon removal is thinking of agricultural land as a 3D cube. We design our systems with the knowledge that certain species need full sunlight and should therefore be at the canopy level, while other species thrive sub-canopy, with shade.

Regenerative

Worldwide, agriculture is responsible for 80% of deforestation, and is causing fatal health issues and mass extinction. We take degraded and deforested land and reforest through agroforestry. “Sustainable” is not enough, we must intelligently regenerate soil, forest ecosystems, watersheds, and rural livelihoods.

Successional

The mix of species present in our agroforestry systems changes over time, as it does when natural forests regenerate. In year one we may include species like bananas, papaya, or ginger that provide income but must eventually be sacrificed and put into the soil to “feed” the next wave of species. Other species like açai and cacau that prefer shaded environments may enter only after some trees have provided cover.

Organic

We do not use any herbicides and are transitioning to certified-organic agroforestry systems. Our wild-harvested products from the Amazon are naturally organic and we are in the process of certifying them as such.

Optimized for Carbon Removal

We decided to design each agroforestry system in a way that can remove carbon in perpetuity. By planting a biodiverse set of precious wood species that are ready for harvest at different years, we can selectively harvest a small percentage of trees every few years and keep the harvested carbon locked away for generations in the form of furniture or buildings, while opening up space in the system for additional carbon removal through tree growth.

Optimized for Income

Each tree species that we plant has an economic role in our agroforestry system. We plant trees that will provide fruit, timber, and spices, and we pack in as many as possible while still making sure each tree gets the proper amount of sunlight.

Co-benefits include
  • CO2 Removal
  • Repairing of ecosystems
  • Climate-change resilient agriculture
  • Regeneration of soil life & soil fertility
  • Rural income and reversal of the exodus towards “favelas” in Brazil
  • Consumer health through nutrient-dense food and products
  • Habitat for biodiverse plant, animal, and fungal species; slowing extinction and generating biodiversity credits
  • Water retention and cycling
  • Nutrient retention and cycling

Our main

Products
  • Coffee

    Iconic agroforestry-grown beans for regenerative focus and rich flavor

  • Cacao

    Native Amazonian “Food of the Gods”

  • Açai & Jussara

    Native Superfood from the Amazon and Atlantic Forests

  • Banana

    Nutrient dense from the heart of our agroforests

  • Brazil Nut

    Wild-harvested from the Amazon. Organic and nourishing

  • Turmeric

    Coveted flavor with Medicinal properties

  • Black pepper

    Freshly grown as a vine on agroforestry trees

  • Precious Wood

    climate positive for beautiful furniture and construction

  • Buriti

    Superfood from Amazon’s “Tree of Life”. Full antioxidants like beta carotene

  • Clove

    Medicinal properties meet smell and taste

  • Cupuaçu

    Native Superfood with Unique flavor and properties

  • Andiroba

    Medicinal and anti-aging for hair and skin. Wild-harvested & organic

If you are interested in our products please email [email protected] for more information.

Carbon

Courageous Land was born out of the realization that climate change will disproportionately affect the poorest people on Earth. Agroforestry removes CO2 from the atmosphere which aids in abating global warming and the extreme weather events that threaten homes and lives around the world. In addition, agroforestry is more climate-change resistant as agroforestry systems outperform exposed conventional agriculture in floods, droughts, heat, and frost.

Courageous Land has expertise in measuring carbon in agroforestry systems and already provides this service to clients. In addition, CL won a grant from Regen Network’s scientific team to build a specific methodology for measuring carbon in agroforestry systems. The methodology is nearly complete and draws on globally recognized best practices suggested by Verra and other carbon organizations.

If you are interested in carbon measurement or the commercialization of carbon credits from regenerative agroforestry systems, please reach out.

Reach Out

Courageous Land exists to create prosperity for all of life on Earth.

We do this by creating habitat for biodiversity, healthy food for consumers, and perhaps most importantly, improving the lives of people working in rural areas.

Rural communities are currently suffering from inadequate income, limited upward mobility, and overexposure to cancerous agrotoxins. This is leading to an aging population of farmers as young rural people flee to cities, specifically to slums ("favelas") in the case of Brazil.

Courageous Land is working towards drastically improving rural life by A) providing participation in future profits to everyone that works with us, plus above market wages in a fulfilling environment B) access to CL sales channels and education for local smallholder farmers C) a safe work space with no agrotoxins, as we focus on organic cultivation.

Starting in 2023, Courageous Land will donate 1% of all food grown to nourish Brazilians that are going hungry, particularly children. In addition we will facilitate the planting of perennial fruit and nut trees on smallholder land to help provide permanent food security. We strongly believe in the cultural and ancestral value of agriculture, and agroforestry in particular. The planet needs new regenerative farmers.

Finally, we work to prioritize job creation and empowerment of women in all locations, and in Roraima we prioritize the inclusion of Venezuelan refugees as they adapt to Brazil.

Trusted by
Our People
Expertise in leadership, global sales, marketing and technology. Previously, he led LTK in Latin America, a company that has driven over $12B in sales. Prior to that Philip worked in private equity at Tarpon Investimentos in Brazil, and in the investment management division of Goldman Sachs in New York. Philip is American, living and working in Brazil for the last 10 years. He graduated Magna cum Laude from Cornell University.
Philip Kauders
CEO & Co-Founder
One of the world's leading agroforestry experts. Forest engineer and farmer who has planted more than 700 hectares of agroforestry. He is a pioneer of carbon-optimized agroforestry and is a specialist in cultivating both timber and fruit. Prior to Co-Founding CL, Gilberto led agroforestry at Sucupira Agroflorestas and Regenera farm (now part of Courageous Land). Gil has a Masters in Ecology from UFSCar and Forest Engineering from UFRRJ.
Gilberto Terra
Head of Agroforestry & Co-founder
Expertise in managing agroforestry companies since 2011, with a focus on farm-level administration. Prior to Co-Founding Courageous Land, Luiza was the Executive Director Sucupira Agroflorestas and Regenera farm. Luiza has a Masters from UFSCar.
Luiza Avelar
VP Operations & Co-founder
Leads the agroforestry intelligence and technology platform for Courageous Land. Matheus develops tools and software essential to CL’s planning, operations, and monitoring. He has expertise in carbon, remote sensing, data, and programming. Matheus holds a Masters in in the Mathematical Modelling of Climate Science from Exeter University (UK).
Matheus Pamplona
Carbon, Data, Tech
Leads partnerships, business development, and finance. Fred has deep experience with agroforestry, sales, exports, logistics, and financial structuring. He holds an International Relations degree from IBMECa and Circular Economy certificate from the University of Cambridge (UK). Prior to joining CL Fred worked at Ontex, Alvarez & Marsal, Kraft Heinz and RB Capital.
Frederico Campos
Business Development & Partnerships
Helps lead agroforestry operations in the field. Rafael is a forestry engineer with a master's degree in agronomy, and has diverse expertise in agroforestry technologies. He holds a Masters from UNESP and previously worked at Futuro Florestal and Sucupira.
Rafael Ciraqui
Agroforestry Manager

Career

Large-scale tropical agroforestry is bold, hard, and beautiful. We look for mission-aligned, intelligent, driven teammates that have a history of achieving important goals. We operate at the frontier of the agroforestry world and push that frontier further every day. Our environment is expansive, action-packed, and gratifying. If you are ready to be the best version of yourself, come join our team on this mission.

Please send your CV to [email protected]

Join Us
Meet Our Locations
Bahia, Atlantic Rainforest
Brazil

Regenerative agroforestry systems that combine native cacau, açai, precious timber, biodiverse fruits, and spices, with a strong inclusion of native tree species at risk of going extinct. We have been operating agroforestry in Bahia since 2011 at our 83 hectare location, Sucupira Agroflorestas, co-founded by Courageous Land co-founder Gilberto Terra. We are in the process of building out a regional hub and agroforestry school to carry out research, engage local communities, and optimize post-harvest processing for the region.

Roraima, Amazon Jungle
Brazil

Our Amazon operations launched in 2021 and we currently have over 287 hectares under management. We focus on native cacau, açai, precious timber, biodiverse fruits, and spices, and include native tree species at risk of extinction, plus lime and coffee. In addition, the Amazon is home to our conservation project that fights deforestation by providing income to local communities and venezuelan refugees who turn away from degenerative jobs (logging, ranching etc ) and instead work to maintain forest standing by sustainably wild-harvesting superfoods and ingredients. We are building a regional hub here as well with plans for premium processing facilities, education, and worldwide export.

São Paulo, Atlantic Rainforest
Brazil

The Atlantic forest biome is where 72% of Brazil’s 200 million citizens live, and only 10% remains after decades of intense deforestation for agriculture. We are planning an expansion to this critical area to plant agroforestry systems that include native tree species, fruits, and premium arabica coffee.

Contact Us
Interested in Collaborating

If you are interested in partnering, please email us:

Email Us

[email protected]