As a Sustainability Manager in a forestry company for 3 years, I struggled with the challenge of improving community well-being while guaranteeing environmental conservation and protection under the current production system. This experience led me to pursue a master’s degree in sustainability science, where I studied the structural causes and global dynamics underpinning this production system. My master’s thesis, part of the EPICC (environmental policy instruments across commodity chains) project, investigated the systemic impacts of the European Union’s Deforestation-Free Regulation on the Brazilian cattle supply chain. We uncovered the unexpected consequences and interconnected challenges stemming from these impacts. My focus extended to deforestation outcomes, discussions on agricultural production models based on agroecology, and justice implications for smallholders and marginalized groups.

Now, as a PhD student, I focus on decolonization pathways for Global South economies. I aim to investigate strategic regenerative industrial policies to replace mainstream commodities extraction rooted in ecologically unequal exchange, exploring system theory to identify leverage points for national industry’s growth and South-South alliances through transdisciplinary approaches. Additionally, I aim to explore Modern Monetary Theory to sustain the viability of the policies proposed economically. My motivation is born out of the need for new economic and political imaginaries for the Global South that promote productive sovereignty and focus on improving the well-being of its citizens.