{"id":77172,"date":"2024-01-22T09:25:23","date_gmt":"2024-01-22T12:25:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=77172"},"modified":"2024-01-24T14:23:26","modified_gmt":"2024-01-24T17:23:26","slug":"meeting-of-the-waters-in-city-of-god-local-project-strengthens-identity-and-salvages-memory-of-the-communitys-rivers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=77172","title":{"rendered":"Meeting of the Waters in City of God: Local Project Strengthens Identity and Salvages Memory of the Community\u2019s Rivers"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Rio<\/a>
Rio Grande seen from the new bridge in City of God with the Tijuca Massif in the background. Photo: Gabrielle Concei\u00e7\u00e3o<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Clique aqui para Portugu\u00eas<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/h4>\n

This is the final in a series of articles on water justice in the favelas<\/a>\u00a0resulting from the course \u201cClimate Justice in Community Journalism: From Pitching to Writing.\u201d The course, conducted by the\u00a0RioOnWatch<\/em>\u00a0team in collaboration with the Sustainable Favela Network (SFN<\/a>)* Youth Working Group took place between July and September 2023. It is also part of a series<\/a>\u00a0created in partnership with the\u00a0Behner Stiefel Center for Brazilian Studies<\/a>\u00a0at San Diego State University, to produce articles for the\u00a0Digital Brazil Project<\/a> on environmental justice in the favelas for RioOnWatch<\/em>.<\/h4>\n

Floods and Environmental Racism in the History of City of God<\/h3>\n
\"People<\/a>
People being rescued and transported by boat during a flood that affected a large part of Rio de Janeiro, in 1966. Photo: Rio de Janeiro\u2019s Fire Department<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The first flood that marked the history of City of God (CDD<\/a>), in the West Zone<\/a> of Rio de Janeiro, occurred in 1966<\/a>, affecting the entire city. The outcome was the sudden growth of the new community as it received those impacted by floods and landslides in other favelas. In our roots, we carry the memory of being the result of the removal of people from other favelas to the public housing complex initially established in City of God, whose founding was accelerated and justified to house these people in 1966.<\/p>\n

However, this would not be the only flood to shape the territory\u2019s history. City of God and its surrounding region of Jacarepagu\u00e1<\/a>\u2014part of Rio’s Planning Area 4 (AP4)\u2014are prone to flooding. Bounded by the Pedra Branca<\/a> Massif, Tijuca Massif and the Atlantic Ocean, with an extensive network of sub-watersheds, City of God is located in the Rio Grande<\/a> floodplain. This implies that since its original construction by municipal authorities, a portion of a public housing complex<\/a> was vulnerable to flooding.<\/p>\n

Three decades later, the 1996<\/a> flood was the largest in the favela\u2019s history. It showed that despite being a regional characteristic, the suffering and harm caused would not be evenly distributed between Jacarepagu\u00e1, City of God, and Barra da Tijuca<\/a>. The event resulted in 53 official deaths and over 2,000 displaced<\/a> in City of God.<\/p>\n

We began to interact differently with the environment. People remember moments<\/a> when, as children, they were placed on bunk beds, benches or walls to avoid contact with the water. Adults were worried about losing the material objects they had worked so hard to buy, but the main fear was losing their children, washed away by the force of the water or afflicted by diseases resulting from contamination by dirty water.<\/p>\n

Gradually, stories shifted from those of cooling off in the rivers, the memories of playing in the water and along its banks<\/a>, and the food security that the waters provided. Little by little, conversations began to describe the river as a source of fear and death. It instills a constant sense of vulnerability, alleviated only by the support network the neighborhood provides in times of emergency. It is the neighbors who help<\/a> the affected, assist in house clean-ups, fight for the right to dignified housing<\/a>, and strive to preserve the memory of those victimized in the devastated areas of the favela.<\/p>\n

Marcia Esteves, former resident and community organizer in City of God, who served as a leader in the research course on Water and Energy Justice in the Favelas<\/a>, regrets that her memories of the rivers of City of God are limited to the floods of 1996.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it’s important to address the memories. Many do not know that the river was once a place for fishing and playing. I think it develops a different perspective on the part of many people who are unaware of the local history.\u201d \u2014 Marcia Esteves<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The sorrow of experiencing a flood\u2014and the loss of clothes, food, furniture, appliances, documents and records of memories (photographs and letters)\u2014changes the way we relate to rivers, rain and ourselves. Fear, triggered by such traumatic memories, gives rise to what is now termed climate anxiety<\/a> or eco-anxiety<\/a>. It manifests in several ways, such as difficulty sleeping during strong storms, regardless of the person’s physical exaustion. This is a topic that is increasingly explored by scholars in the health field.<\/p>\n

In the dynamics of environmental racism, it is common to lay blame on residents for tragedies. In scientific articles that address flooding or pollution of favela rivers, the population is often deemed responsible. Frequently, this discourse is incorporated into conversations, even by residents themselves, without an in-depth critical assessment of the actual circumstances.<\/p>\n

An example of this logic was exposed by the collective Building Together<\/a>, active in City of God. In 2020, the collective published the results of a community survey<\/a> that revealed only 52.9% have access to solid waste collection three to four days a week. For 33.3% of those interviewed, collection occurs once or twice a week; for 6.7%, less than once a week, and for 7.2%, the collection service does not reach their location. It is necessary to challenge the narrative that everything in the favela is ugly and dirty because of residents when the main problem is State negligence<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Alfazendo and the Importance of Community Bases<\/h3>\n

In City of God, the Eco Network<\/a> project leads educational actions through a participatory methodology, aimed at students from the area’s municipal schools, which in 2022 and 2023 had the generating theme “Meeting of the Waters.” Its main objective is to awaken different perceptions and careful practices towards the environment and the favela’s rivers<\/a>. Eco Network, created in 2011, is a social technology recognized<\/a> by the United Nations (UN<\/a>), the result of years of socio-environmental struggle by City of God’s\u00a0Alfazendo<\/a> Group alongside social movements through the Community Network for Socio-Environmental Development<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Socio-environmental<\/a>
Socio-environmental education workshop at the Sempre Vida Nise Da Silveira Municipal School, in City of God, in November 2022. Photo: Lidiane Santos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Eco Network project aims to build the identity of youth in the area as educators. The actions involve strengthening their identity as favela residents and fostering a sense of belonging to the territory. The environment is created based on the perceptions of traditional peoples, embracing the idea that Nature has inherent rights, and recognizing that everything around us is Nature, including the forms of relationships that begin in the womb. Participants have the opportunity to view the favela with a lens of affection and care. It offers a possibility to study with, from and for<\/em> City of God and not just about it.<\/p>\n

Alfazendo<\/a> has a long history of fostering critical education in the community. Since its founding in 1998, the organization introduced the first Preparatory Course for Blacks and the Needy (PVNC<\/a>) in the area, in addition to literacy classes for youth and adults. The list of actions includes political advocacy, an education forum, Socio-Environmental Education Days, Favela Youth Festivals<\/a>, film clubs<\/a>, and more. Operating since 2011, Eco Network was replicated in the favela of Timbau<\/a>, in Rio’s North Zone favelas of Complexo da Mar\u00e9<\/a>, by another community partner, the Center for Studies and Solidarity Actions of Mar\u00e9 (CEASM<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Eco Network is a comprehensive and integrated initiative that encompasses ongoing training for youth and adults, engendering employment and income opportunities. It includes a network to empower waste pickers, a point for cooperative recycling, socio-environmental education workshops<\/a>, training for teachers, educators, and professionals in public schools, as well as the implementation of socio-educational structures such as sensory spaces, sustainable toy libraries, and educational gardens. These actions are developed following the participatory methodology of educator Paulo Freire<\/a>, empowering learners with knowledge generated through horizontal dialogue on generating themes.<\/p>\n

In its first year, the Eco Network team created the mini-doc<\/a>\u00a0“The Rio Grande in City of God”<\/em>:<\/h4>\n