The University of S?o Paulo in Brazil serves as the Chair for the UNAI Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 1 Hub: No Poverty. On 28 June 2025, the Luiz de Queiroz Agricultural College at the University of S?o Paulo (ESALQ/USP) launched a participatory initiative that brings together science, community, and regional identity to reflect on and propose updates to the.

In addition to the 17 original SDGs, this initiative  incorporates SDG 18, a Brazilian contribution focused on promoting racial and ethnic equity. This addition reaffirms a commitment to an inclusive and locally grounded development agenda.

The initiative takes a territorial approach, focusing on SDG 1: No Poverty. By drawing on local knowledge and lived experiences, the project seeks to critically and collaboratively explore how poverty - in its multidimensional aspects - affects life in regions across the S?o Paulo countryside, such as Piracicaba.

The leaders of each working group were selected based on their technical expertise and experience related to the specific SDG addressed by their group. They were also chosen for their ability to engage wider segments of the external community and promote inclusive participation. Although the project is hosted at ESALQ/USP and includes university community members among its participants, the majority of group leaders come from outside academia. This approach reinforces the project's primary goal of connecting individuals across different sectors and backgrounds.

Titled ¡°Caipira Contributions to the 2030 Agenda,¡± this initiative highlights and values the region¡¯s cultural identity. In Brazil, the term caipira refers to traditional rural populations, particularly in the Southeast region, known for their strong ties to the land, community-based knowledge, and agricultural livelihoods. Although the term was once used pejoratively to describe ¡°simple and uneducated¡± people, caipira culture is now recognized as part of Brazil¡¯s intangible cultural heritage. It contributes to cultural diversity, food traditions, family farming, and local sustainability practices. For instance, the Piracicaba accent is officially recognized as a part of local intangible heritage. This regional identity serves as a lens through which the SDGs are being reinterpreted based on local contexts and lived realities.

Between June and November 2025, six meetings will take place, bringing together working groups composed of inspiring regional leaders with deep roots in the community. These groups include members from ESALQ/USP and broader civil society. More than 20 institutions will participate, including other universities, collectives, municipal councils, civil society organizations, social movements, and cultural and solidarity economy groups. The first meeting in June featured Alecs Tsuka from Global Shapers Brazil SP Hub as a special guest, who shared insights about the 2030 Agenda and his personal journey in  sustainable development.

Each meeting includes educational sessions focused on the 2030 Agenda, followed by collaborative working sessions. During these sessions, working groups analyze and discuss the SDG targets, proposing adaptations that are sensitive to local contexts. This process fosters collective knowledge production that values both academic insights and traditional community-based knowledge.

The initiative encompasses broad and interconnected themes, illustrating the multidisciplinary nature of the 2030 Agenda and its significance across various fields of knowledge and aspects of social life. More than just a theoretical exercise, this initiative serves as a call for concrete territorial connection based on active listening and shared responsibility in addressing the challenges of sustainable development.

This project is coordinated by Ms. Janaina Barretta, the lead of UNAI SDG 1 Hub Chair at ESALQ/USP, under the guidance of Professor Luciano Mendes.

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