As part of Planetary Embassy in Belém during the UN climate summit COP30, Swissnex in Brazil and the Leading House Latin America at the University of St.Gallen present a dialogue on how government, research, startups, and entrepreneurship support systems can align to drive Amazonian bioeconomy pathways that are locally rooted and globally relevant.
Opening with a reflection on the Amazon as both a living laboratory and a shared responsibility, the session will bring together startups, public authorities, and research institutions to explore how innovation and collaboration can generate inclusive opportunities while protecting ecosystems.
Innovation in the Amazon’s Bioeconomy is a continuation of nexBio Amazonia, a pioneering bioeconomy program held annually in the Amazon region, powered by Swissnex in Brazil, the Leading House Latin America (University of St. Gallen), and the Brazilian National Council of State Funding Agencies (CONFAP).
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Rahel Guggenbühl is a nature-fintech entrepreneur and co-founder of reilo., a company developing nature-based solutions that integrate social finance to support smallholders and incentivize ecosystem restoration. She specializes in sustainable finance, carbon, and biodiversity assessment, and corporate sustainability strategy, building models that align environmental regeneration with inclusive economic growth. With over nine years of experience across the nature-based, climate, food-tech, and HR-tech sectors, Rahel has led projects in forestry, agriculture, employee engagement for climate protection, and climate consulting. She has collaborated with governments, NGOs, corporations, and communities to deliver scalable, locally grounded solutions. Her work spans Tanzania, Brazil, and Switzerland, where she has built partnerships that connect financial and climate innovation with ecological and social outcomes.
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Iara Menezes is the Director of Bioeconomy at the State Secretariat for Climate, Environment, and Sustainability of Pará. Within the Government of Pará, she leads bioeconomy initiatives and fosters multisectoral dialogue aimed at building a sustainable legacy for the state and the Amazon in the post-COP30 period. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from the University of Brasília, and has worked to bridge international cooperation efforts with the realities of Indigenous peoples and traditional communities.
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Hannah Maués is an Administrative Officer at Instituto Peabiru, where she supports resource mobilization and institutional development in collaboration with General Director João Meirelles. A lawyer by training, she holds postgraduate degrees in Civil and Procedural Law from Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV) and in Contract and Consumer Law from the University of Coimbra. She is a member of the Racial Equality Defense Commission (OAB/PA) for the 2022-2024 term and also practices law in partnership with attorney Júlio Pacheco, focusing on consumer and inheritance law with a strong emphasis on conciliation and conflict resolution. Complementing her legal and administrative background, she has pursued further training in partnership management with civil society organizations (PUC/SP), Balanced Scorecard, and Strategic Human Resources Management (FGV/SP). Her work bridges law, social justice, and institutional collaboration, contributing to inclusive and sustainable development in the Amazon region.
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Marco Failache Filho is the co-founder and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Amaztrace, a Brazilian company developing traceability and ESG technologies to empower smallholder farmers in the Amazon through accessible, data-driven solutions. An engineer and entrepreneur, he is recognized for his leadership in sustainable innovation and digital transformation. He holds a Master’s degree from the University of Lisbon and has built a career at the intersection of technology, sustainability, and social impact. His expertise spans software architecture, data integration, artificial intelligence, and cloud infrastructure. Winner of first place in the inaugural edition of nexBio Amazônia, Marco is fluent in Portuguese, English, and French, and has basic knowledge of Italian.
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Rubens Magno Júnior is the Executive Director of the Support Service for Micro and Small Enterprises (Sebrae) in Pará and the Institutional Director of the Brazilian Association of State Sebraes (ABASE). He holds a degree in Business Administration and a postgraduate degree in Marketing. Re-elected as Sebrae’s Executive Director in 2022, a position he has held since 2019, and again in 2025 as ABASE’s Institutional Director, Rubens has been a key leader in promoting entrepreneurship and sustainable development in the region. He currently leads Sebrae’s major initiatives, in partnership with the state government, to prepare entrepreneurs for the Conference of the Parties (COP30), which will take place in 2025 in Belém, Pará.
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Pedro Capra is the Academic Relations Program Lead at Swissnex in Brazil, where he helps connect universities, think tanks, research institutions, professors, and researchers to establish and strengthen science and technology partnerships. He holds a PhD in Political Science from UNICAMP and was a Visiting Researcher at both the University of Zurich and the University of Fribourg. Since then, Pedro has been working closely with Latin Americanists from Switzerland and abroad, fostering academic collaboration and exchange.
From November 9 to 21, 2025, the Planetary Embassy comes to life in Belém, Brazil, on the margins of the UN climate summit COP30. Part of a series of pop-up experiences across the global Swissnex network, this edition is hosted in the zoobotanical gardens of the Goeldi Museum, a setting that blends the Amazon's biodiversity, science, ancestral wisdom, and Swiss legacy.
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The Planetary Embassy in presented by Swissnex in Brazil with the support of Presence Switzerland, as part of the Road to Belém program led by the Embassy of Switzerland in Brazil.
