Meaningful Business (MB:) Please tell us a bit about your background.
Rogério Cavalcante (RC): I’m 44 years old, went to law school, and have dedicated half of my life to entrepreneurship. I’m also a Buddhist, and that lead me to be a purpose-driven individual in my personal life. And, at some point on the road, it did not make sense anymore not to be a purpose-driven entrepreneur.
So, at that point, I gave up all companies that I was leading to focus 100% of my time and attention on Sintecsys’ impact-driven approach.
MB: What led you to start Sintecsys?
RC: I believe life and business are inseparable. You cannot be at peace if the source of your earnings is destroying life as we know it. I also believe business not only changes as the world evolves, but also has the power to change the world and the way we interact with it. Sintecsys was a major chance to protect the environment and reduce CO2 emissions from avoided wildfires.
MB: What is the problem you are trying to solve?
RC: In the last two years, the intensity and aggression of wildfires, and the levels of CO2 that they emit, have been the worst recorded in twenty years. Sintecsys was born by the end of 2016 and acts directly against one of the main causes of global warming, protecting life on land, public health and natural and private assets.
Our Pantera® software brings together climate science (by avoiding and measuring CO2 emissions reductions from wildfires), fire brigade safety and operational efficiency. By detecting wildfires in as little as three minutes, we reduce losses from burned areas by up to 90%.
Rogerio Cavalcante, Founder & CEO, umgrauemeio (formerly Sintecsys)
MB: What is your biggest challenge right now?
RC: We need funding to grow. Not traditional VC funding, but funding from impact investors who are looking for a purpose-driven business with capacity to become profitable.
MB: What is your vision for the future of your business?
RC: To be recognised as a climate technology that is helping to mitigate global warming and environmental destruction. We are moving towards green recovery and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) is becoming a mainstream trend. We are a solution that works directly on the ‘E’, but also supports the ‘S’ by protecting public health, and the ‘G’ by reducing financial losses from wildfires.
We want to be at the forefront of forest protection, championing high-end technologies that increase the holistic approach of caring for our forests. This is what drives our team.
MB: What is your advice to other leaders who want to combine profit and purpose?
RC: Do not expect an apple tree to give oranges. In other words, if you are looking to bring together purpose and profit, search for the right investor.
Find an impact investor that won’t just bring money to your business, but will let you work with your purpose. The right impact investors care about prosperity of people and planet, not just financial returns.
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Quickfire Questions
MB – What’s the best piece of advice you ever received?
RC – True Happiness = Dream Big + Expect Little + Constant Effort.
MB – Who inspires you?
RC – Mahatma Ghandi and Lama Michel Rinpoche.
MB – How do you define success?
RC – To be proud of what I do and the legacy it might give to future generations, my daughters, friends, and business partners.
MB – What is something you wish you were better at?
RC- To be more patient with diverse points of view other than mine. I must work on having patience, with low expectations and constant effort, so I can find common ground with others.
MB – What is the one book everyone should read?
RC – “The Little Prince” by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.
MB – What do you do to relax?
RC- Spend time with my daughters, and horse riding.
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Discover the other MB100 leaders recognised for their work combining profit and purpose to help achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in 2020, here.
