The coordinator will join other program members in developing initiatives that seek to transform the current climate crisis scenario on the planet.
Among the four selected to make up the 2026 class of the Climate Breakthrough Award is the coordinator of the Rutî Indigenous Fund, an initiative of the Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR), Josimara Baré. The announcement was officially released by the Climate Breakthrough Award this Tuesday (15), through the organization's official website and social networks. The program seeks to offer resources and opportunities for those selected to develop initiatives capable of causing significant impacts on the current scenario of the climate crisis on the planet.
Josimara Baré will work specifically on developing initiatives aimed at facilitating the flow of climate finance to indigenous peoples and traditional communities. This objective is similar to her existing role as coordinator of the Rutî Fund, created in response to the communities' need to reduce bureaucratic processes in accessing resources for projects related to territorial protection, sustainability, and cultural strengthening.
The coordinator's experience with funding initiatives aimed at indigenous peoples began in 2021, when she started working with indigenous organizations and funds. Among the projects developed is the contribution to the implementation and consolidation of the Rio Negro Indigenous Fund (FIRN), created by the Federation of Indigenous Organizations of the Rio Negro (FOIRN) to support indigenous associations in the territories of the lower, middle and upper Rio Negro.
In Roraima, this work continued with the creation of the Rutî Indigenous Fund. In 2024, Josimara took over the coordination of the structuring and implementation of the CIR initiative. The following year, during the initial phase of the Fund, 25 projects from indigenous communities were selected, with an investment of R$ 2.275 million. In 2026, a new call for proposals allocated another R$ 2.4 million for the development of community projects.
This trajectory also demonstrates the coordinator's experience in creating mechanisms that seek to bring resources closer to indigenous territories and strengthen initiatives led by the communities themselves.
"This is an achievement for all of us, and it also carries with it many of the lessons learned along the way in the indigenous movement and in the direct funding experiences we have developed.", reports the coordinator.
Through the program, Josimara and the other selected participants will receive support to develop their initiatives. As part of the award, each selected participant will receive a multi-year funding package worth US$4 million, currently considered the largest climate prize awarded.
"Success means that we will be able to put our motto into practice: 'We are the answer.'", says Josimara."Indigenous territories are not empty spaces or merely conservation areas, but places of life, science, spirituality, protection, and future."
The Climate Breakthrough Award is an international philanthropic award that seeks to support leaders and strategists in creating and implementing proposals aimed at addressing the climate crisis in its various aspects.