258
Brazilian Association of Technical Standards (ABNT, acronym in Portuguese)
(Ribeiro and Cherubini 2014 ). This represented the fi rst step towards the dissemination of LCA in Brazil.
After this, a few important guidelines and studies were developed until the
creation of the Brazilian Life Cycle Association (ABCV, acronym in Portuguese)
in 2002. This association aims at the dissemination and consolidation of life
cycle management in Brazil, working along with businesses, academic institutions, governments and organized civil society (ABCV 2015, see Ribeiro and
Cherubini 2014 ).
Four years later, in 2006, a project for constructing the Brazilian Life Cycle
Database started. The governmental institution responsible for this project was the
Brazilian Institute of Information on Science and Technology (IBICT, acronym in
Portuguese), which is a federal institute associated to the Science, Technology and
Innovation Ministry. In 2010 this project led to the creation of the Brazilian Life
Cycle Assessment Program (PBACV, acronym in Portuguese). This program was
approved by the National Council for Metrology, Standardization and Industrial
Quality (IBICT 2015 ).
The coordination of the program was delegated to INMETRO (National Institute
for Metrology, Standardization and Industrial Quality) in cooperation with
IBICT. The objective of PBACV is to “support the sustainable development and the
environmental competitiveness of the Brazilian industrial production and promote
the access to internal and external markets” (BRASIL 2010b, see Ribeiro and
Cherubini).
Despite all these activities and the involvement of some industries in PBACV, the
engagement of some key businesses was still lacking. Therefore, some key companies created the group “Brazilian Business Network for LCA”.
2 Brazilian Business Network for Life Cycle Assessment
The Brazilian Business Network for LCA was launched in 2013 by nine large companies in Brazil, namely Braskem, Danone, Embraer, GE, Grupo Boticário, Natura,
Odebrecht, Oxiteno and Tetra Pak, in partnership with the Brazilian Life Cycle
Association and Akatu Institute.
The fi rst activity of the Network was to conduct a survey among its members to
understand the main gaps in LCA development in the Brazilian business. The conclusions of the survey showed that the lack of experts and reliable data prevented
further use of LCA and LCM in business. Thus, the Network defi ned its main goals
as follows:
• To create an environment of cooperation between companies interested in using
LCA in Brazil, allowing the optimization of resources
• To educate and qualify companies regarding the concept, application, and the
benefi ts of LCA
M.S.R. Rocha et al.
Brazilian Association of Technical Standards (ABNT, acronym in Portuguese)
(Ribeiro and Cherubini 2014 ). This represented the fi rst step towards the dissemination of LCA in Brazil.
After this, a few important guidelines and studies were developed until the
creation of the Brazilian Life Cycle Association (ABCV, acronym in Portuguese)
in 2002. This association aims at the dissemination and consolidation of life
cycle management in Brazil, working along with businesses, academic institutions, governments and organized civil society (ABCV 2015, see Ribeiro and
Cherubini 2014 ).
Four years later, in 2006, a project for constructing the Brazilian Life Cycle
Database started. The governmental institution responsible for this project was the
Brazilian Institute of Information on Science and Technology (IBICT, acronym in
Portuguese), which is a federal institute associated to the Science, Technology and
Innovation Ministry. In 2010 this project led to the creation of the Brazilian Life
Cycle Assessment Program (PBACV, acronym in Portuguese). This program was
approved by the National Council for Metrology, Standardization and Industrial
Quality (IBICT 2015 ).
The coordination of the program was delegated to INMETRO (National Institute
for Metrology, Standardization and Industrial Quality) in cooperation with
IBICT. The objective of PBACV is to “support the sustainable development and the
environmental competitiveness of the Brazilian industrial production and promote
the access to internal and external markets” (BRASIL 2010b, see Ribeiro and
Cherubini).
Despite all these activities and the involvement of some industries in PBACV, the
engagement of some key businesses was still lacking. Therefore, some key companies created the group “Brazilian Business Network for LCA”.
2 Brazilian Business Network for Life Cycle Assessment
The Brazilian Business Network for LCA was launched in 2013 by nine large companies in Brazil, namely Braskem, Danone, Embraer, GE, Grupo Boticário, Natura,
Odebrecht, Oxiteno and Tetra Pak, in partnership with the Brazilian Life Cycle
Association and Akatu Institute.
The fi rst activity of the Network was to conduct a survey among its members to
understand the main gaps in LCA development in the Brazilian business. The conclusions of the survey showed that the lack of experts and reliable data prevented
further use of LCA and LCM in business. Thus, the Network defi ned its main goals
as follows:
• To create an environment of cooperation between companies interested in using
LCA in Brazil, allowing the optimization of resources
• To educate and qualify companies regarding the concept, application, and the
benefi ts of LCA
M.S.R. Rocha et al.