Grantee spotlight: Associação Transformar, Brazil
Leaders of the SOA hub in São Paulo and co-founders of Brazilian NGO Associação Transformar will plant mangroves and continue their UN-endorsed Transformar program.
Jul 01, 2026
Associação Transformar understands the power of experiential learning to transform how people connect with the ocean. Since 2020, SOA has been providing grants in support of their experiential learning and direct restoration program, Projeto Transformar, taking place in Paraty, Campinas, and São Sebastião-SP, Brazil. In 2024, a grant enabled them to expand the program to include invasive coral removal from protected areas, and with a grant in 2026, founders Alexandre and Giovanna will integrate mangrove planting across four hectares in São Sebastião.
Advancing 30x30 in Brazil
In 2025, Alexandre and Giovanna, who lead the SOA hub in São Paulo, built relationships with protected area managers, stakeholders, and NGOs to increase their direct impact on three state-run protected area—APA Marinha Litoral Norte (sustainable use), Parque Estadual Marinho da Laje de Santos (no take), Parque Estadual da Ilha Anchieta (sustainable use)—and the federally-managed Refúgio de Vida Silvestre de Alcatrazes (no take). In March 2026, the published a scientific article in Springer demonstrating the social impact of Projecto Transformar and the "ocean identity" the program inculcates in youth.
With a grant awarded by SOA in July, Associação Transformar will coordinate a trained technical diving team to remove by hand more than two metric tons of invasive sun coral (Tubastraea spp.) in APA Marinha Litoral Norte that threaten native coral, sponges and marine life by competing for space and resources. Working in partnership with Fundação Florestal, the São Paulo state agency that manages MPAs, the Transformar team will plant mangrove seedlings across a 4.29 hectare restoration site in highly threatened wetlands and remove en estimated 850 kilograms of solid waste from beaches and mangroves. They also intend to train 30 young people in ecosystem restoration, including mangrove restoration and invasive species management.
Transformar will continue to run immersive ocean literacy programs for around 120 participants across three cohorts within MPAs and one Indigenous community. As with previous projects, their model of combining pedagogical activities focused on biology, ecology, and marine conservation with the experiential education of scuba diving aims to foster long term stewardship of the ocean. These programs are conducted with youth in marginalized coastal communities by partnering with educational institutions including the Indigenous school of the Tava Mirim community. They will continue to track participants' environmental perception and behavioral change to inform the publiciation of another volume in a scientific journal, which will be presented to MPA managers and public authorities to help in decision-making and advocate for increased conservation in 2027, including at the UN Ocean Decade conference in Rio in April.
Environmental Impact Indicators:
2 tonnes of invasive sun coral (Tubastraea spp.) removed
4.29 hectares of mangrove area planted and protected, estimated CO2e benefits associated with mangrove restoration and protection to be quantified during implementation
850kg of solid waste removed from beaches, mangroves, and coastal areas
Social Impact Indicators
120 people trained in ocean literacy, advocacy, and leadership; 30 people trained in ecosystem restoration, including mangrove restoration and invasive species management; 102 total hours of training provided across environmental education and ecosystem restoration activities
1 scientific article supported through project data collection and analysis; 1 monitoring and data product to support decision-making by MPA partners; 3 to 5 meetings or working sessions with policymakers, MPA managers, and public authorities; 1 policy support output linked to advocacy processes
50 to 100 policy supporters or campaign signatories engaged; measurable behaviour and attitude change assessed through participant data collection tools
2030+
Within the next 5 years, Transformar aims to scale their model across multiple coastal regions, integrating environmental education and ecosystem restoration into MPA mangement while building a network fo trained conservationists.
In parallel, TransforMAR aims to contribute to measurable ecological improvements through continued invasive species management and mangrove restoration, with the long term objective of restoring 131 hectares of mangrove ecosystem.
São Paulo Hub
Alexandre Augusto da Silva
Co-Founder & President Associação Transformar
Alexandre is a Brazilian engineer, SCUBA diving instructor and founder-president of Associação Transformar, a UN Ocean Decade–endorsed not-for-profit NGO. He delivers ocean literacy with schools, coastal communities, traditional peoples and Indigenous communities, and supports ecosystem restoration with protected-area partners on Brazil’s North Coast. With over a decade in project management across conservation, education and the energy sector, he bridges science, policy and practice to strengthen responsible tourism and fair, evidence-informed coastal governance. He holds a Master’s in Ocean Science and Technology on tourism and governance.
Giovanna Scagnolatto
Co-Founder & President Associação Transformar
Giovanna is the leader of the TransforMAR Project and has led the SOA hub in São Paulo since 2018, She is an environmental engineer with a Master’s in Ocean Science and Technology focused on fishing communities and plastic pollution, She designs TransforMAR actions in partnership with protected-area managers, including environmental education and ocean-literacy initiatives aligned with the Alcatrazes Archipelago Wildlife Refuge (a fully protected area). With the North Coast Marine Environmental Protection Area and Ilha Anchieta State Park, she co-plans education programmes and supports ecosystem-restoration efforts through mobilisation and clear communication on invasive sun-coral management. She also oversees field logistics, operational safety, partner relations and consolidated reporting to strengthen responsible tourism and evidence-informed coastal governance.
Yara Yoshino
Communications Coordinator
Yara is a a Biological Sciences student at the University of Brasília in her final year. Since childhood, she's had an interest in nature's beauty but marine biology, especially conservation, has captured her heart. Her goal is to show the general public the importance of the ocean in our lives and how its preservation will directly affect us.
