When traditional knowledge combines with innovation and technology, transformative solutions emerge. This is how the Permamar Philanthropic Fund was born, created to promote environmental regeneration, climate justice, and the strengthening of caiçara culture on Brazil's southeastern coast. The Fund's financial management is handled by Sitawi.
Marine and coastal ecosystems face increasing pressures: real estate speculation, industrial expansion, and climate change. These factors threaten biodiversity, compromise territorial balance, and jeopardize the survival of communities living in harmony with the sea.
The Fund is an initiative of the Permamar Institute, a non-profit association based in Mangaratiba (RJ), created in 2024. The organization works to defend socio-environmental rights, environmental education, marine and coastal conservation, and promote the traditional knowledge of the Sea Peoples.
“For us, the Permamar Fund is also about legacy: what we want to leave for our future leaders: young people who love, preserve, and live off the caiçara culture.”, highlights Thais Marinho, programmatic manager of the Fund and founder of the Permamar Institute.
What is caiçara culture?
Caiçara culture is the result of a blend of Indigenous, Portuguese, and African elements. Strongly linked to the sea and artisanal fishing, this cultural heritage represents not only a traditional way of life but also essential knowledge about sustainable management and respectful coexistence with nature.
The organization's approach promotes harmonious coexistence between biodiversity and traditional ways of life, transforming challenges into opportunities. Through research, training, and socio-environmental innovation, they create solutions that ensure the regeneration of the oceans and the survival of coastal communities. Check out some of the project's initiatives:
Caiçara Guide App
Currently in advanced development, the app will connect tourists with authentic experiences offered by coastal communities. The goal is to strengthen the local economy and promote sustainable tourism, always with community involvement.
Children's book “The Water Mother and the Caiçara Fisherman”
A work that combines poetry, culture, and marine conservation, encouraging children and adults to reflect on the oceans and traditional ways of life. The digital version is already ready, and the next step is to print and distribute the book free of charge to public schools in the municipalities served. Storytelling workshops with puppets and scenery are also planned, all carried out with the volunteer dedication of the team. Click here to support this project.
Sea Culture for All
A program that promotes Caiçara identity and cultural practices through workshops, memory circles, music, crafts, and intergenerational activities, promoting belonging and the transmission of knowledge.
Socio-environmental Turnaround of the Bioregion
In September 2025, the Fund will hold a major collaborative event, with simultaneous activities in four municipalities within its area of operation. The Virada Socioambiental (Social and Environmental Turnaround) will bring together community leaders and promote a reunion for the 20 young people trained by the Mata Atlântica de Pé (Standing Atlantic Forest) project, strengthening ties, knowledge, and commitment to the region.
"Through the partnership with Sitawi, Permamar can focus on the strategic and programmatic management of its initiatives, ensuring efficient execution, accountability, and the confidence to receive donations from a variety of donor profiles," emphasizes Yananda Lima, Coordinator of Partnerships and Development in Philanthropy Management.
With initiatives that integrate education, culture, innovation, and preservation, the Permamar Fund is an invitation to support a new way of caring for the coast and those who live off it. Learn more here.
