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About Viva a Vida
Viva a Vida develops educational, cultural, youth leadership and community mobilization activities to Empower Adolescents, Young People and Children, and support the fight against racism. Currently, Viva a Vida works in Vila de Abrantes and the Cordoaria Quilombo. *
We believe that people deserve opportunities to increase their self-esteem, engage with their community, develop their autonomy and make healthy choices for their present and future lives.
*Quilombos are settlements first established by the former enslaved in Brazil, places of Afro-Brazilian resistance, whose continued existence represents a triumph over racism and exclusion.
Projects
Viva a Vida’s current projects are:
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AFROTECA MUVUCA - Community Library
The Afroteca Muvuca library is a children's literature project that aims to counter the acute educational disparities caused by neglect and racism. We work in a container adapted as a community library and multi-use space, where workshops are held with children aged 5 to 12. In 2023, we worked with more than 60 children after school, using books that tell the stories of indigenous peoples, traditional and black communities. With a collection of almost 200 books, we have developed a methodology based on the principles of Afro-centered education and workshops using play and natural and ancestral resources.
I BELIEVE IN THE CREW! - Human Rights, young people and racism
Workshops for high school students run in the state education system to discuss Human Rights, young people and racism. We look at how these three themes interconnect, and what this has to do with the genocide of black youth. Using literature and poetry as tools, we discuss important issues that affect young lives, and help the development of self-esteem and emotional intelligence, to counter the violence in their lives. We also run arts events and publishing workshop products in book form.
Poetry, dance, music, exhibitions, visual arts, cinema and other manifestations of urban art are all welcome at our Arts Events. They provide a space open to all audiences, using art as an instrument for dialogue about Human Rights, access to culture, leisure and the democratization of literature.
About Vila de Abrantes - Quilombo de Cordoaria
ARTS EVENT - RASTA & CO - Cinema and Arts
Vila de Abrantes is a semi-rural neighborhood on the edge of the municipality of Camaçari, with a population of approximately 48,000 inhabitants.
Camaçari has serious rates of violence against young people and adolescents. The 5th Edition of the Adolescent Homicide Index (ANI) notes that Camaçari has an AHI of 9.82 (3 times above the national average), ranking 5th in Brazil. Almost 1 in every 100 young people in the municipality will be murdered before they turn 18 years old. This is what led us to work in this community.
Our offices are located in the Cordoaria Quilombo, home to places of significant historical and cultural interest, including the Flour House, where flour, beiju pancakes and cakes are produced, where families subsist on family farming and where you can find traditional capoeira and Afro-Brazilian drumming.
It is Viva a Vida’s belief that these young people deserve to be supported to fulfil their true potential and live a life free of violence and rights violations.
Videos
VAV Newsletter March to May 2015
VAV Newsletter
December 2014 to February 2015
Violence, Crack and Crackdowns in Camaçari, Bahia
VAV Evaluation Report
Viva a Vida
Results in 2023
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The first physical Afroteca community library established in the State of Bahia;
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The first booklet written by a quilombola child, launched at the Pelourinho International Literature Fair (FLIPELÔ) in Salvador;
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Approximately 900 adolescents and young people trained in racial literacy through poetry workshops and an exhibition in a state school;
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More than 800 children participating in story telling that values their racial identity, in state schools across the municipality;
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90 quilombola children from the Cordoaria Quilombo involved in after-school activities, participating in black, quilombola and indigenous literature workshops, reinforcing their racial identity and self-esteem.
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