Studio for Children and Adolescents
Before the Studio Began
The Almerinda Malaquias Foundation (FAM) was founded in 1997 as a non-profit to provide an education and professional training center for the Novo Airão community in the Amazonas region of Brazil. The FAM emphasizes education and social transformation and is committed to promoting income generation, environmental education, sustainable natural resource management, guidance, and professional career training.
FAM was born with the purpose of reusing wood
residues left over from shipbuilding. This waste was poorly disposed of in the city of Novo Airão. Focusing on reusing this waste, FAM created a training center for young people to learn the artisan's trade and have their family income guaranteed.
The income generation program began by producing sustainable handicrafts by reusing wood residues. Later, new products, different from wood, were added to the production chain, such as recycled paper and handmade soaps with Amazonian aromas.
Today, the income generation program serves around 50 families who obtain their income directly from the results of this activity. The program is self-sustainable, as it generates revenue for artisans, helps maintain the cost of the structure to function, and supports FAM's education programs by using 10% of the monthly revenue.
The Issue
While the Amazon is remote, urban life and the strong influence of modern technology have noticeably distanced children and adolescents from their social culture and living within a natural environment. The impact of modern technology on children and adolescents is that they are also more sedentary and are losing touch with the physical activities of their culture, such as art, music, dance, theater, and social interaction with their families and community. Not only is a distancing occurring, but new ideas and influences are emerging, and old stories and traditions are being lost.
The Solution
To help reconnect children and adolescents to their culture, FAM founded an environmental education program called the Studio for Children and Adolescents. Aimed to engage children aged 7 - 14 from the city of Novo Airão, this program promotes ecological literacy, environmental awareness, social responsibility, and an appreciation of the region's culture. By contributing to the integral development of the participating public, the program is committed to building conscientious and responsible citizens prepared to achieve their own goals and live harmoniously with nature and other human beings within their diversity.
The Studio’s activities are carried out during after-school hours. Those who go to school in the morning attend the program in the afternoon and vice versa. Approximately 160 children and teenagers participate daily from Monday to Thursday. Classes are open to all children in the public education system living in Novo Airão from different socioeconomic households.
The Strategy
To achieve the main objective of the project, the proposal is built with the following action strategy:
Sensitize children and those involved about the importance of the Amazon environment. Urban life and the strong influence of technology have increasingly distanced children and adolescents from living with nature.
Provide a broad developmental curriculum for students. To complement the curricular proposal of formal public education, FAM encourages students' motor, physical, emotional, and cognitive development with activities involving art, music, dance, theater, and others.
Encourage the partnership between the student's families and the FAM. The active participation of families will benefit the development of the students by providing opportunities for collaboration and engagement.
Offer activities and educational content respecting the conditions and needs of each age group. We serve students aged between 7 and 14, divided into four groups, with specific curriculum proposals such as valuing cultural and social diversity. The cultivation of arts, cultural manifestations, and traditional knowledge can be maintained through the activities developed. This makes the student understand their roots/origins and keep their own history alive.
Help Raise Money!
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page