{"id":49889,"date":"2018-12-21T11:38:53","date_gmt":"2018-12-21T14:38:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/?p=49889"},"modified":"2022-08-24T09:26:39","modified_gmt":"2022-08-24T12:26:39","slug":"city-of-gods-eco-network-makes-environmental-ed-socially-relevant-at-the-4th-sustainable-favela-network-exchange","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=49889","title":{"rendered":"City of God’s Eco Network Makes Environmental Ed Socially Relevant at 4th Sustainable Favela Exchange"},"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

\n

The Afternoon of the Fourth Exchange: Alfazendo’s Eco Network<\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Rio de Janeiro\u2019s West Zone<\/a> comprises approximately 70%<\/a> of the city\u2019s land mass, resulting in a vast array of neighborhoods\u2014from rapidly developing Barra da Tijuca<\/a> to densely populated Campo Grande<\/a>, located up to three hours from downtown Rio by public transport. During the fourth Sustainable Favela Network<\/a> exchange, participants witnessed this diversity firsthand, beginning the day in the urban forest<\/a> surrounding\u00a0Quilombo do Camorim<\/a> and concluding in City of God<\/a>\u2014a favela known for\u00a0inadequate public investment<\/a>\u00a0but also for its powerful network of local institutions<\/a>\u00a0committed to confronting these obstacles.<\/p>\n

Favela Youth Shine at City of God Festival<\/h3>\n

Following the visit to Quilombo do Camorim, the fourth SFN exchange concluded at the\u00a0Favela Youth Festival<\/a>, held at City of God\u2019s Alphonsus de Guimaraens Municipal School, where SFN host organization Alfazendo was hard at work with other partners running a day of performances, workshops, conversation groups, and other activities. The SFN group arrived in time to watch a performance by youth African dance group AIACOM, view the exhibits created by City of God-based artists on display, and visit the \u201cIdentity Tent\u201d providing African braiding workshops and hair styles.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Against the backdrop of laughter as children ran through the exhibits, Alfazendo<\/a> founder and festival coordiantor\u00a0Iara Oliveira<\/a> described the organization\u2019s work, which includes providing socio-environmental education at dozens of schools across City of God through the\u00a0Eco Network<\/a>\u00a0program. Beyond City of God, Alfazendo’s Eco Network has recently expanded across town in the\u00a0North Zone<\/a> favela of Morro do Timbau, in\u00a0Complexo da Mar\u00e9<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A key aspect of the initiative’s model is its focus on socio-environmental education\u2014interlacing education on society and race with its environmental teachings\u2014and focusing on training young people\u2014who Oliveira calls \u201cthe future\u201d\u2014to serve as socio-environmental educators themselves. Watching youth of all ages participating in artistic performances, cultural activities, and conversations about the potential of their community, the impact of this methodology shone through.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Mobilizing to Support Local Development<\/h3>\n

The following week, Oliveira expanded on the organization\u2019s history and mission during the SFN\u2019s final extensive exchange at the Sepetiba Ecomuseum<\/a>. A lifelong resident of City of God, Oliveira\u00a0founded Alfazendo<\/a> in 1998 as a network-based collective inspired by the liberation methodologies of renowned social theorist and educator\u00a0Paulo Freire<\/a>. Applying Alfazendo’s pedagogical methods to tackle socio-environmental challenges in the community, Oliveira launched the\u00a0Eco Network<\/a>\u00a0in 2010.\u00a0\u201cWe were disturbed when we would look out from a bridge in City of God and see Barra [an elite neighborhood] closer and closer\u2014while here in City of God, we don’t have any public policies that truly improve residents’ quality of life,\u201d she told the SFN group.<\/p>\n

\"Children<\/a><\/p>\n

As Oliveira explained, City of God is comprised of 57 small favelas split into 14 different areas. To effectively address this complexity, Alfazendo and other local partners set out to create a local development plan encompassing \u201cnine thematic areas so that institutions in<\/em> City of God can fight for public policies for<\/em> City of God.” Oliveira emphasized the importance of working together as a network: “Alfazendo alone can’t do a thing. So if we can’t do anything alone, we need the schools, we need residents, we need grassroots organizations and skilled youth to dispute power. So this is what we do: we build capacity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Alfazendo\u2019s mapping process and local development plan helped the group determine needs and recognize important references within the community. \u201cIf we don’t have local development\u2014if people don’t identify with the place\u2014we can’t have a local movement,\u201d Oliveira stated. The creation of a local development plan included asking: \u201cWho can contribute? Who are the supporters? Are there connected projects? Which institutions can we rely on, or not?\u201d Oliveira said. From there, Alfazendo decided to work with teachers to support socio-environmental education in local schools, organize related activities such as the development of community gardens, and create a support and training system for the community\u2019s recyclable materials collectors.<\/p>\n

‘Fighting for this Territory’ Through Socio-Environmental Ed<\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The Eco Network, which Oliveira describes as “a social technology to support socio-environmental development,\u201d supplements class curricula in 28 local schools. The Eco Network emphasizes environmental education that addresses students’ realities, adapting classes based on local needs and including discussions of social issues surrounding race and gender.<\/p>\n

Oliveira shared data from activities carried out by the Eco Network over the past six years: from 2011 to 2017 alone, the initiative hosted 316 hours of training for recyclable materials collectors, 1,666 different workshops, and 1,916 hours of educational activities together with 350 participating teachers.<\/p>\n

\u201cEach time we\u00a0get a young person into college, each time we get a young person to finish high school, we are fighting for this territory,\u201d Oliveira said. At the same time, she emphasized that \u201cthere is no such thing as an individual solution,\u201d connecting the importance of intra-community networks with the necessity of cross-city networks such as the Sustainable Favela Network.<\/p>\n

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

*RioOnWatch<\/em>\u00a0is a project of the NGO Catalytic Communities<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Clique aqui para Portugu\u00eas The\u00a0Sustainable Favela Network\u00a0(SFN) is a project of\u00a0Catalytic Communities\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 […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":169,"featured_media":50108,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1288,1290,1333,1268,1271,329,452,2200,1329],"tags":[662,532,231,2405,756,280,397,385,221,223,37,2786,388,2634,2840,471,692,1140,21],"writer":[2695],"translator":[],"illustrator":[],"photographer":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-49889","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-highlight","8":"category-civilsociety","9":"category-event-reports","10":"category-favelaculture","11":"category-favelaqualities","12":"category-solutions","13":"category-rio20","14":"category-toolkit","15":"category-by-international-observers","16":"tag-afro-brazilian-culture","17":"tag-catadores","18":"tag-city-of-god","19":"tag-community-garden","20":"tag-community-organizing","21":"tag-complexo-da-mare","22":"tag-education","23":"tag-environmental-education","24":"tag-favela-culture","25":"tag-favela-as-a-model","26":"tag-north-zone","27":"tag-pedagogy","28":"tag-recycling","29":"tag-series","30":"tag-series-sfn-exchanges","31":"tag-sustainability","32":"tag-trash-collection","33":"tag-waste-management","34":"tag-west-zone","35":"writer-jessica-depies"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49889","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/169"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=49889"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49889\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/50108"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=49889"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=49889"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=49889"},{"taxonomy":"writer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fwriter&post=49889"},{"taxonomy":"translator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftranslator&post=49889"},{"taxonomy":"illustrator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fillustrator&post=49889"},{"taxonomy":"photographer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fphotographer&post=49889"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}