{"id":49445,"date":"2018-12-26T07:00:48","date_gmt":"2018-12-26T10:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/?p=49445"},"modified":"2025-09-13T14:08:39","modified_gmt":"2025-09-13T17:08:39","slug":"5th-and-final-on-site-sustainable-favela-network-exchange-of-2018-visits-the-sepetiba-ecomuseum-video","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=49445","title":{"rendered":"Final On-Site Sustainable Favela Exchange of 2018 Visits the Sepetiba Ecomuseum [VIDEO]"},"content":{"rendered":"

Clique aqui para Por<\/strong>tugu\u00eas<\/strong><\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The\u00a0Sustainable Favela Network<\/a>\u00a0(SFN) is a project of\u00a0Catalytic Communities<\/a>\u00a0(CatComm)* designed to build solidarity networks, bring visibility, and develop joint actions to support the expansion of community-based initiatives that strengthen environmental sustainability and social resilience in favelas across the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Region. The project began with the 2012 film\u00a0Favela as a Sustainable Model<\/a>, followed in 2017 by the\u00a0mapping of 111 sustainability initiatives<\/a>\u00a0and the publication of a\u00a0final\u00a0report<\/a>\u00a0analyzing the results.<\/em><\/p>\n

In 2018, the project organized\u00a0on-site exchanges among eight of the oldest and most established organizations<\/a>\u00a0that were mapped in the Sustainable Favela Network (one of which is the subject of this article), followed by a full-day exchange with the entire network that took place on November 10. The eight participants in the on-site exchanges featured in this series<\/a>\u00a0include six community-based organizations: the\u00a0Vale Encantado Cooperative<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0Alto da Boa Vista<\/a>,\u00a0EccoVida<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0Hon\u00f3rio Gurgel<\/a>,\u00a0Verdejar<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0Engenho da Rainha<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Complexo do Alem\u00e3o<\/a>,\u00a0Quilombo do Camorim<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0Jacarepagu\u00e1<\/a>,\u00a0ReciclA\u00e7\u00e3o<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0Morro dos Prazeres<\/a>, and\u00a0Alfazendo\u2019s Eco Network<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0City of God<\/a>. In addition, the exchanges visited two broader initiatives focusing beyond favelas with extensive experience in sustainability:\u00a0Onda Verde<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0Nova Igua\u00e7u<\/a> and the\u00a0Sepetiba Ecomuseum<\/a>. The program is supported by the\u00a0Heinrich B\u00f6ll Foundation Brazil<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n

Watch the video that accompanies the exchanges featured in this series<\/a>\u00a0by clicking\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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The Fifth and Final Exchange: Sepetiba Ecomuseum<\/h3>\n

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On the first Sunday of every month, a group of local educators and activists offers a glimpse at the history, culture, and environmental wealth of the neighborhood of Sepetiba<\/a>, located at the extreme edge of Rio de Janeiro’s West Zone<\/a>. For the past ten years, the Sepetiba Ecomuseum<\/a> has developed a unique brand of grassroots social museology<\/a>\u00a0that works to represent one of Rio\u2019s most socio-spatially segregated neighborhoods in a positive light. In the words of founding member Bianca Wild: \u201cPeople only preserve what they love, and they only love what they know. So if you don’t know what’s in your neighborhood, you aren’t going to value it.\u201d It was only fitting, then, for the last of the Sustainable Favela Network\u2019s 2018 extensive exchanges to take place in Sepetiba, embarking on one of the Sepetiba Ecomuseum\u2019s \u201cTours of Recognition.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cSepetiba has played a formative role in Brazil\u2019s history. Sepetiba was present in colonial Brazil, imperial Brazil, and in the Brazilian Republic,” Wild told the SFN group before beginning the tour. She explained that recognizing the neighborhood\u2019s historical significance can improve residents\u2019 perceptions of their community, helping to remove the stigma of living far from Rio\u2019s city center in a neighborhood that lacks consistent public services. In addition to Sepetiba\u2019s history, the ecomuseum works to raise awareness of its rich natural environment. \u201cDespite being degraded<\/a>, the Sepetiba Bay is our\u00a0natural heritage. In the past, it was called the ‘Bay of Miracles,'” Wild explained, describing how people would travel from all over seeking\u00a0to treat a variety of illnesses using the bay’s mineral-rich mud. Wild\u2019s account resonated with SFN members, including Vale Encantado<\/a>\u2019s Ot\u00e1vio Barros, who recounted stories of his mother and sister visiting Sepetiba for that very reason.<\/p>\n

The Sepetiba Ecomuseum\u2019s \u2018Tour of Recognition\u2019<\/h3>\n

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While the Sepetiba Ecomuseum developed their monthly walks to encourage locals to rediscover their neighborhood, the tours have drawn the attention of visitors from across the city. On average, 70 to 80 people attend the monthly tours\u2014reaching as many as 160 participants in some events. Wild told the SFN group that over the past decade, she has seen the positive impact of the Sepetiba Ecomuseum\u2019s work, but that there is still lots of work to be done. The group hopes to create more trails in the coming years, attract more residents to participate in their tours, and make the walks accessible to those with disabilities. In Wild\u2019s words, ensuring that the Ecomuseum\u2019s trails are universally accessible is \u201cfundamental to elevating the self-esteem of local residents.”<\/p>\n

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Sepetiba\u2019s unequal access to public services due to its location sparked a response from the previous exchange’s point of focus, the community group Alfazendo<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0City of God<\/a>, also located in the West Zone. Alfazendo representative Carlos Alberto Oliveira lamented Rio\u2019s model of development that, for more than fifty years, has relied on removing lower-income citizens from the center of the city and moving them into peripheral communities lacking in physical infrastructure, education, and other public services\u2014a history he has seen repeated in Sepetiba, City of God, and across the city. \u201cWhat we learned with our history is that we also have to be alert, because this is going to keep happening\u2026 It’s not surprising because, after all, we are black and poor. [But] we are going to occupy [these] spaces,\u201d Oliveira said.<\/p>\n

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Following the path through some of Sepetiba\u2019s most important natural heritage sites, the group paused to discuss the growth of mangrove swamps\u00a0in the Sepetiba Bay. Wild, along with Sepetiba Ecomuseum representative Aline Barcellos, noted the ecological role that mangroves play in the local ecosystem, helping recover the area\u2019s crab population and functioning as an ecological barrier to waste disposed of in the bay.<\/p>\n

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In the words of Barcellos: \u201cThe mangroves are actually ‘feedback’ that nature gives in response… trying to remediate pollution.\u201d SFN members contributed their knowledge of mangroves, with Onda Verde<\/a> representative Diogo Luiz explaining that \u201cmud in the mangroves is not pollution.” Despite local opposition among some residents who consider it aesthetically unattractive, the mud is important in helping the mangrove grow. Environmental engineer Leonardo Adler, who helped build the Vale Encantado community’s sewage biodigester<\/a>, added on, explaining how mangroves serve as natural water filters similar to the system in Vale Encantado: “In Portuguese, we call the post-treatment technology for effluent from the biodigester an \u2018area of roots\u2019\u2014but in English, it\u2019s called a \u2018constructed wetland.’ And wetlands are flooded areas such as mangrove swamps\u2026 They\u2019re plants that filter nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium so that the water that is released is already treated.” Wild and others from the Sepetiba Ecomuseum were excited to learn more about the mangroves swamps’ ecological importance.<\/p>\n

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The Unequal Distribution of Environmental Risk<\/h3>\n

After lunch of fresh local fish on the Sepetiba Bay, the Sustainable Favela Network group reconvened to hear Rafael Chaves, a doctoral collaborator in the Department of Geography at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), present his research on the uneven distribution of environmental risk in Brazil. Chaves began by thanking the SFN participants for the knowledge they had shared over the course of their exchanges and offering his technical perspective as another set of tools for participants to use in thinking about their individual work. He then summarized his work surrounding risk and inequality, explaining that environmental risk is unevenly distributed depending on the social classes inhabiting certain spaces. Differentiating Brazilian society between an “elite” and a “working class,” Chaves discussed the ways in which unequal access to public services, capital, and land markets results in the lower classes being forced to inhabit areas of greater environmental risk. At the same time, he said that the government and the elite also habitually use discourse surrounding environmental risk to justify the removal of communities<\/a> that allegedly present a threat of environmental degradation.<\/p>\n

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Chaves concluded his presentation by specifically linking these areas of risk to the creation of favelas, saying: \u201cThese lands, which present greater risks for human occupation due to their natural characteristics end up being occupied exactly by those people without access\u2014because of a series of historical factors\u2014to more secure lands.\u201d These people, he explained, are then responsible for mitigating the risks of inhabiting these areas: \u201cThey are the ones who get their hands dirty in order to reduce the vulnerability [both occupational and environmental] of these spaces.\u201d For this reason, Chaves identified favelas as a housing solution\u2014one that citizens largely neglected by the government and elite created on their own.<\/p>\n

Sharing Dreams, Strengthening the Network<\/h3>\n

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To conclude their visit to Sepetiba, each of the day\u2019s participants discussed the dreams they hold for their projects in the coming year. Bianca Wild began the conversation with the Sepetiba Ecomuseum\u2019s hope to reach more residents. Cris dos Prazeres of ReciclA\u00e7\u00e3o<\/a>\u00a0described that she has a similar goal in mind and hopes to strengthen the \u201ccollective consciousness\u201d in her community, Morro dos Prazeres<\/a>, to ensure future generations value the organization and continue with its work<\/a>. Iara Oliveira<\/a> from Alfazendo’s\u00a0Eco Network<\/a>, based in City of God<\/a>, contributed a different perspective, saying that her \u201cgreatest dream is for our [work] to no longer be necessary.” Ideally, the government would address the inequalities and injustices facing communities such as City of God through effective public policies, which would relieve civil society organizations like Alfazendo from responsibilities that should be carried out by competent public authorities. Recognizing that her dream may not become a reality for the foreseeable future, Oliveira said she is focused on bolstering youth engagement in City of God and by strengthening networks with like-minded institutions across the city. Reflecting on the similarities in methodology between the Sepetiba Ecomuseum and Alfazendo’s Eco Network, the groups\u2019 representatives brought up the possibility of hosting exchanges between their communities.<\/p>\n

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Vale Encantado\u2019s Ot\u00e1vio Barros shared a specific set of goals for the upcoming year, including his hope to connect the community\u2019s ecological sanitation system<\/a> to as-of-yet unconnected homes, finish the construction of a cooperative kitchen capable of producing food for residents and visitors alike, and increase the environmental awareness of Vale Encantado\u2019s residents. Meanwhile, Onda Verde\u2019s Helio Vanderlei<\/a> reflected on the difficulty of dreaming at all, when organizations must focus on planning everything from volunteer commitments and institutional partnerships to finances and operations. With these considerations in mind, Vanderlei suggested that SFN members create a spreadsheet for each project to list their goals and describe how others within the network could help them achieve their objectives\u2014an idea met with widespread agreement. The group soon began discussing what each group hoped the Sustainable Favela Network could contribute to their work in the year to come, and how they could contribute to the Network in return. After five full-day exchanges, the day\u2019s conclusion gave a glimpse into the growing potential of the Network, and the strength and resilience its members had already built.<\/p>\n

Read up on all of the 2018 Sustainable Favela Network exchanges here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Watch the video of all five days’ exchanges now:<\/h3>\n