Anti-racist education for a violence-free future

Dear Friends and Supporters,

Things have been moving forward at Viva and Vida, with more activities to strengthen the Afroteca Muvuca. Since our last report, we have continued to expand our educational, cultural and community initiatives in the Cordoaria Quilombo, strengthening our ties with children, families, schools and institutional partners. Beyond our workshops and cultural activities, we continue reaffirming our commitment to anti-racist education, valuing the quilombo community, and building a sense of belonging, self-esteem and identity for the children and teenagers.

None of this would be possible without the support of each and every one of you, who believe in the transformative power of reading, culture and community education, so THANK YOU!

I – AFROTECA MUVUCA

Regular workshops and expansion of activities

The Afroteca Muvuca workshops continue to take place weekly, from Tuesday to Thursday, in morning and afternoon sessions, working with all the year groups at the Cordoaria Quilombola School Center. This semester, we have expanded our educational initiatives, working directly with grades 2 through 5 and with elementary school students. This represents an important step in our educational work, allowing us to support children from early childhood through the early years of basic education. All these activities are based on anti-racist methodologies, an appreciation of Quilombola culture, and encouraging reading, creativity, and the collective construction of knowledge.

Territory, Belonging, and Identity

Since February the workshops have focused primarily on the territory in which the children live and how it contributes to the development of their identity and sense of belonging.

We have explored themes, such as:

• the natural environment surrounding the community;

• family and ancestral stories;

• an appreciation of traditional knowledge;

• the collective memory of the quilombo;

• the pride of living in and belonging to the quilombo territory.

Through conversations, artistic activities, reading, drawings, games, and group projects, the children have been able to reflect on who they are, who came before them, and the importance of preserving their history and culture. We have realized that by strengthening the children’s connection to their local community and roots, we are also strengthening their self-esteem, emotional security, and appreciation of their Black and Quilombola identity.

Reading and Anti-Racist Literature

Literature remains one of the primary educational tools at Afroteca Muvuca. Over the past few months, we have been working with books that foster imagination, emotional connection, celebrate Black identity, and provide a sensitive perspective on the world and our community.

Among the books explored in the workshops and reading circles are:

Dudu and Grandma’s Mirror, by Joelma Queiroz;

From My Window, by Otávio Junior;

Earth, by Carol Fernandes and Yuri de Francco;

Morning, by Carla Pinto Bittencourt;

These readings are always accompanied by discussions, artistic projects, and playful activities that help the children connect the stories to their own experiences.

The Mobile Afroteca

Other very special moments this semester have occurred with the Mobile Afroteca. We took our storyteller, Maju, to the Maclina Maria da Glória Municipal School, where she shared Afro-Brazilian literature and activities to encourage reading with local children and read the story ‘Mama Panya’s Pancakes’ aloud, prompting reflections on solidarity, community, sharing, and collective living.

The Mobile Afroteca grew out of a desire to spread literature beyond our center in the quilombo, reaching other children and strengthening anti-racist education networks in different settings.

Community Library

Our community library remains open on Saturdays, welcoming children and families from the community for reading, socializing, and cultural activities. In addition to encouraging reading, the space is a safe environment for exchange, creativity, and strengthening community bonds. During this period, we have welcomed volunteers to our Saturday workshops to lead activities creating toys from recycled materials, fostering creativity, environmental awareness, and group play.

We continue developing our Literary Bag project, one of the Afroteca Muvuca’s most important initiatives to strengthen the connection between reading, family, and community. The Literary Bag serves as a bridge between the Afroteca and the children’s homes: each week, participants take books home, with suggestions for reading and sharing as a family, encouraging moments of affection, listening, and collective growth through literature.

This year, the project has earned a “new look.” We have produced new Literary Bags, which we will start distributing to children and families later this month, further strengthening the sense of belonging and care for the project. This initiative demonstrates the importance of bringing families closer to the world of reading and making books a part of children’s daily lives beyond the workshop setting.

II – FAMILIES AND THE COMMUNITY

Meetings with Families

Starting in May, we will begin a new project phase meeting families from the quilombo. These meetings will feature storytelling, conversation circles, and discussions about reading, childhood, child development, and strengthening family bonds. We believe that bringing families closer to children’s literary experiences is essential to strengthening their education and building a network of collective care around childhood.

IFBA Student Visit

We welcomed students from the IFBA Camaçari Campus to our headquarters. They visited Afroteca Muvuca to learn more about our history, our methodologies, and the project’s impact on the Quilombo community. The meeting provided an important opportunity to exchange knowledge and strengthen the connections between public education, the local area, and community initiatives.

III – TRAINING AND INSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

PIC Training Program – Early Childhood Citizenship

This semester we have been participating in the PIC – Early Childhood Citizenship training program, conducted in partnership with AVANTE. The training aims to conduct a survey on the state of early childhood in the municipality of Camaçari, where our offices are located. Participating in this process is extremely relevant to us, since it broadens our perspective on public policies focused on children, strengthens our capacity to act in the region, and contributes to planning activities that are even more aligned with the real needs of Quilombola children and families. Furthermore, participation in the PIC strengthens our networking efforts and reinforces Viva a Vida’s commitment to defending the rights of children in early childhood.

Quilombola Traditional Knowledge Course

Our team is also participating in the Traditional Quilombola Knowledge Course, organized by the Nego Bispo School in partnership with IFBA Camaçari. This training has been essential for enhancing our reflections about ancestry, territory, memory, Quilombola education, and an appreciation of traditional knowledge. Participating in it directly strengthens our educational and cultural practices, allowing our team to develop activities that are linked to the context and knowledge of the Quilombola community. It also represents an important movement to value education built upon the experiences and knowledge of Black and traditional communities.

IV – COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

Education, culture, and community mobilization

We continue to strengthen Viva a Vida’s presence within the community through cultural and educational activities, as well as social mobilization initiatives. Workshops, reading circles, storytelling sessions, and community gatherings serve as spaces for listening, socializing, and collective empowerment. We are working hard to encourage families to get involved in the Afroteca Muvuca activities, especially during the cultural events held on Saturdays and in initiatives focused on reading and child development. Such involvement strengthens the bond between the community, children, and education, reaffirming the importance of community initiatives in the care and upbringing of children.

V – INSTITUTIONAL WORK

Strengthening our Team and Networks

We continue to strengthen our institutional ties, expand partnerships, and invest in ongoing staff training. Throughout this period, our team has been involved in group reading and discussion of the book ‘How to Be an Anti-Racist Educator’ by Bárbara Carine. These sessions have been extremely important in deepening the team’s educational reflections, broadening our understanding of anti-racist educational practices, and ensuring that our activities are increasingly aligned with our commitment to valuing Black and Quilombola identities. In addition to deepening discussions on education, structural racism, and childhood, the collective reading process strengthens teamwork, promotes active listening and the exchange of experiences between educators, and directly contributes to the development of methodologies that are more sensitive, aware of, and connected to the reality of the children and families served by Afroteca Muvuca.

Team members participate in meetings, courses, institutional visits, and training programs, helping to establish Viva a Vida as a leader in anti-racist education, literature, and community empowerment within the quilombola territory. We also invest in building support and collaboration networks that enable the continuity and expansion of Afroteca Muvuca’s initiatives.

THANK YOU!

All of this is only possible thanks to the support of individuals and organizations who believe in the power of education, literature, and culture as tools for social transformation. Every workshop held, every book shared, every child welcomed, and every family involved in this process is the result of a collective effort built with great care, resilience, and hope. We remain deeply grateful for your partnership.

With love, From Viva a Vida

Dear Friend and Supporter

Well, here we are at the beginning of the year with:

I - A(NOTHER) VIVA A VIDA SUCCESS STORY!

2^ND CORDOARIA QUILOMBO LITERARY FAIR

On 31 October, with hearts full of joy and gratitude, we held the second edition of the Cordoaria Quilombo Literary Fair.

More than a gathering of books and readers, the fair was a powerful celebration of our ancestry, our history of resistance, and the future we are building together through the power of words.

So much energy and so many hands worked to ensure the day went well:

The Cordoaria Quilombo Community, who shared their knowledge, stories, the power of their living memory and their warm welcome. They were the true essence of the day!

The Writers and Artists, who gifted us with their ‘escrevivência’ (their experience of both living and writing) and their art, which pulsated in every verse, story, and performance. Their voices reaffirmed the importance of Afro-Brazilian and indigenous literature.

Our Partners and Supporters, (that’s YOU!) who believe in the transformative potential of culture to make this dream a reality.

The Volunteers and Organizing team, who worked tirelessly, dedicating their time and attention to even the smallest detail, ensuring that everything flowed with axé energy!

The public, who came from far and near to enjoy, learn and exchange ideas. Their presence is the greatest testimony that reading is an act of freedom and resistance.

We welcomed 100 quilombo children, 100 teenagers from the region and another 200 children from the community creches in Vila de Abrantes.

The program was diverse with workshops valuing black beauty, storytelling, book launches, music, regional cuisine, cultural presentations, handing out books and a great celebration of black literature!

We are so happy to see conversation circles, arts events, workshops, and knowledge exchange flourishing in our region. For us, literature is an instrument to strengthen identity and a central pillar in our ongoing struggle.

II – AFROTECA MUVUCA

Regular Workshops: we concluded the year's activities by compiling student portfolios, evaluating results, and bringing together the team for 2026.

Our end of year student evaluations were based on a score of the children’s activity reports to evaluate three areas: (i) understanding ethno-racial aspects (ii) understanding educational aspects, and (iii) interest in the proposed activities.

1 - Understanding the project’s main objective (ethno-racial relations and the recovery of Black and Quilombola identity) – evaluation of the construction and enhancement of each child’s self-esteem in relation to culture, aesthetics and  combatting racism.

92 percent of the children understood the topics covered and demonstrated an understanding of the importance of strengthening their identity and valuing their history for a better future without racism.

2 – Understanding educational content – assessment of the learning process, reading, text comprehension, motor coordination, learning colors and shapes.

91 percent demonstrated progress in learning, with a particular focus on concentration and sociability with their peers.

3 – Interest and attention levels – assessment of behavior, attention, commitment, and interest in the proposed activities.

73 percent were more open to the activities, adapted to the proposed workshop format and more cooperative with the team and their peers.

In the second semester, we noted a change in the children's behavior. In a strategic evaluation meeting, we concluded that certain structural changes at the schools (all the project children study in the quilombo’s schools) may have contributed to this. One of the schools is undergoing renovation, which has led to several classes being organized into a single class. This disrupted the children's routine and made them more agitated, which had an impact on Afroteca activities. The school will be reorganized in 2026, which we believe will help the children feel more settled.

We apply our evaluation tool to all the participants in our regular ethno-racial workshops. The evaluations of the literary bag and Saturday community engagement project will take place this year. However, we have already identified greater participation and engagement by the families, who now participate in activities with their children.

The creation of the student portfolio for the children’s work over the second semester was really helpful in allowing the families to understand exactly what activities their children were involved in.

We started 2026 with some great news: we now have an Educational Coordinator who will be directly involved in managing the Afroteca Muvuca activities, which will provide it with even more technical support and will enable Évelin, our General Coordinator, to devote her time to other aspects of Viva a Vida’s work, such as strategy, fundraising, institutional relationships, and overall management.

Community Library: We continue to open the library on Saturdays in order to welcome all the children in the community, providing reading support, and artistic and cultural activities that endorse anti-racist education.

At the moment, we are reading the following books (original titles translated into English):

Koumb and the Diambe Drum

The Legend of the Little Drum

My Mother is Black, Yes

Mama Panya's Pancakes - Solidarity, Sharing, and Community Values

Sebastiana and Severina

Mandisa and Grandma Joy

The Ugly Prince

Manu and the Great Kiskadee

Colors in Cordel

What Color Is My Color?

Black Girls

Melchior, the Best

III – COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

 a)   Health Fair: in partnership with the Quilombo Residents' Association and Viva a Vida, Camaçari’s Municipal Health Department held a Health Fair in the quilombo which focused on men's health but offered care to the entire community. The Afroteca wanted to play its part so, while the adults went for consultations and appointments, the children enjoyed storytelling and group activities. We also provided a bookcase full of books for all ages, so that people could take a copy home - WELL-BEING + LITERATURE.

 b)  Young People: with support from the company Boticário, we were able to present young people from the local Tambores de Cordoaria drumming group with fantastic beauty kits.

 IV – INSTITUTIONAL WORK

a)   Intern evaluation: we took advantage of some time at the end of the year to evaluate the performance of our interns, reflecting on what they have learned and their future goals;

b)   Resource Mobilization – Campaigns: In order to raise complementary funds, we participated in the GIVING TUESDAY campaign, which we extended to the end of the year. This fundraising is very important for the visibility of our work, finding potential partners, and receiving national and international funds.

c)   Opening up Pathways for Racial Equality, and Bahia for Peace: we attended the launch of this campaign and the accompanying program, which is bringing social and public policies focused on young black people and those from city peripheries into our area. 

d)   COMVIDA and Corra para o Abraço: we have resumed our activities in institutional relationships, visiting the COMVIDA Institute to discuss management formats and welcoming the Corra pro Abraço Program to our offices. We are so pleased to inform you that one of our former participants is now a Harm Reduction Educator for this program, which works in Risk and Harm Reduction for Vulnerable Populations and whose presence will greatly enhance the Camaçari network.

 e)  Camaçari Literary Fair: the municipality hosted its first Literary Fair, and Viva a Vida was there to reinforce the concept of anti-racist education, supporting authors, and discussing the importance of cultural appreciation for children's literature. 

f)   CMDCA – Camaçari’s Municipal Council for Children and Adolescents: we are members of this council, contributing to the debate on quilombola children and adolescents, and black youth, maintaining dialogue to emphasize the importance of this discussion in  the overall agenda. In 2026, Évelin, our General Coordinator, joined the council's Monitoring and Evaluation Committee, whose main role is to screen projects interested in CMDCA certification.

We have managed all of this through your incredible support, for which we and all the members of the community are so grateful. 

Here’s to a productive and peaceful 2026 for all of us!