Tech4Nature Brazil: A Smart Solution for Safeguarding Threatened Mangroves

Tech4Nature is a global partnership launched in 2020 by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Huawei TECH4ALL to scale up success in nature conservation through technology. In Tech4Nature's second phase, Brazil was chosen as one of six host countries, with the mission of improving the effectiveness of Protected and Conserved Areas (PCAs) through digital innovation and the IUCN Green List Standard. A central requirement of this initiative is the active involvement of local communities in governance — an essential factor for lasting conservation results.

On Marajó Island, in the Amazon delta, the Marine Extractive Reserve (RESEX) of Soure was selected as the project site. Created in 2001 after strong advocacy from local fishing and crab-harvesting communities, the RESEX safeguards nearly 30,000 hectares of mangrove and coastal ecosystems. For generations, local families have lived in balance with these ecosystems, depending on the sustainable harvest of the mangrove crab (Ucides cordatus, known locally as the uçá crab) as a key source of food and income. The communities themselves play a decisive role in governance: they are represented in the RESEX’s Deliberative Council and actively contribute to defining rules of sustainable use, monitoring fishing practices, and ensuring that traditional knowledge guides management decisions. 

Today, this balance faces new challenges. 

Climate change is altering coastal dynamics and threatening mangrove ecosystems, while overfishing and illegal fishing — often carried out by outsiders using unsustainable methods — put additional pressure on crab populations and the livelihoods of over 1,600 families. The inclusion of the Soure RESEX in Tech4Nature reflects not only its ecological importance, but also the strength of its community-based governance. By combining digital tools with traditional knowledge, the project aims to enhance protection of this unique ecosystem and ensure that conservation and community well-being move forward together.

Tech and partnerships: The keys to success

In partnership with Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation ICMBio, Rare Brazil, the Federal University of Para (UFPA) the Federal Institute of Paraíba (IFPB), local associations ASSUREMAS and ACCS, and with the support of federal and state governments, the Tech4Nature project applies cutting-edge technology to strengthen biodiversity conservation and climate resilience in the Soure Marine Extractive Reserve (RESEX) on Marajó Island. Covering nearly 30,000 hectares of mangroves and estuarine ecosystems — an area comparable in size to Malta — this federally managed conservation unit sustains more than 1,600 traditional families who depend directly on the sustainable harvest of the mangrove crab.

Monitoring Climate Change with Environmental Sensors

The project aims to address the broader systemic challenge of climate change. The Federal University of Pará (UFPA) developed an innovative, low-cost environmental sensor system tailored to the extreme conditions of mangrove ecosystems. Commercial equipment available in the global market is prohibitively expensive and ill-suited for large-scale deployment in areas as vast as the Soure RESEX, which spans nearly 300 km².

Monitoring climate change in mangroves presents unique difficulties:

• Logistical barriers: the terrain is formed by dense mangrove roots and intertidal mudflats, which are extremely unstable and accessible only during short low-tide windows.

• Environmental stress: the humid, salty air is highly corrosive to electronic devices, rapidly degrading conventional equipment.

• Large-scale coverage: the vast size of the RESEX makes it impossible to rely on costly imported monitoring devices for long-term use, as maintenance and replacement would be economically unfeasible.

The UFPA-designed devices integrate environmental sensors capable of measuring key variables such as:

• Water salinity
• Water temperature
• Water level
• Air temperature
• Atmospheric pressure
• Wind intensity and direction
• Precipitation amount

The sensors automatically collect data and it through cellular network chips, creating a near real-time stream of environmental information. Their innovative design allows them to withstand the humid, corrosive, and muddy conditions of the mangroves, where most off-the-shelf equipment would rapidly deteriorate.

By using these sensors, data collection becomes continuous rather than seasonal, enabling scientists and policymakers to:

• Track long-term environmental changes in the mangrove ecosystem.
• Anticipate the impacts of climate change on the ecosystem.
• Provide government agencies and communities with reliable scientific evidence to design long-term public policies for conservation and community resilience.

Most importantly, because the solution is locally designed and low-cost, it provides a permanent alternative to expensive imported. Instead of depending on sporadic purchases or donations, Brazilian authorities will have access to a sustainable tool that can be replicated in other conservation areas, ensuring resilience and scalability for the future.

Calling on the community

Critically, the project’s success depends on seamless community integration; it must function as a tool developed with and for the local population, emphasizing capacity building, co-design, and tangible benefits to enhance their autonomy and decision-making power. In this sense, the project design emphasizes co-development and capacity building to ensure the technology is accessible, maintainable, and directly beneficial to local resource users, thereby strengthening their autonomous management capabilities rather than replacing existing knowledge.

Image credit: RARE / The team in the field

By demonstrating a successful, integrated tech-conservation model, the project seeks to establish an evidence-based national blueprint that promotes public policy, thus supporting the adoption of similar technological solutions in protected areas across Brazil.

Over 55 other Federal Protected Areas with mangroves have the potential to replicate the solution. Simultaneously, it strives to deliver tangible local impact by strengthening community voice, securing livelihoods, and safeguarding resources — ensuring the mangrove continues to sustain future generations.

More than a pilot project, this partnership merges innovation with tradition to build a sustainable future for both the Amazon and its people.

Learn more about the Tech4Nature  global partnership.

Co-authors

Beatriz Barros Aydos, Programme Officer – IUCN Brazil 

Beatriz is a biologist specializing in Protected Natural Areas (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 2019). She is currently Program Officer for Brazil at the International Union for Conservation of Nature – South America (IUCN-SUR), working on restoration and conservation projects. Beatriz is a member of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) and of the research group Collaborative Conservation in Protected Areas: A New Management Paradigm at the University of São Paulo (USP).

Julia Machado Lima, Project Manager, Business Environment Department

Disclaimer: Any views and/or opinions expressed in this post by individual authors or contributors are their personal views and/or opinions and do not necessarily reflect the views and/or opinions of Huawei Technologies.