Educating for life. This is the purpose of Casa Familiar Rural (CFR), a school located in the Médio Juruá region of Amazonas, which has been offering high school and professional training courses since 2019 with an innovative approach: alternating pedagogy, in which students alternate between school and community life, applying what they've learned to their daily lives in the forest.
In 2024, after an extensive selection process by Floresta+ Amazônia, which involved several Brazilian organizations, Sitawi was selected to carry out initiatives in partnership with community-based organizations in the states of the Legal Amazon. The initiative is led by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MMA), with support from the Green Climate Fund (GCF).
Among the selected projects is "Agroecological Practices and Entrepreneurship for Young Riverside Residents of the Campina Rural Family School," led by the Carauari Rural Family House Association (ACFR). The initiative strengthens the development of young leaders in the region, fostering sustainable production chains such as rubber, pirarucu, seedling nurseries, and beekeeping, always focusing on promoting the standing forest and the local economy.
“Our goal is to offer an education that does not encourage rural exodus, but shows young people that they can remain in their communities and contribute to local development.”, says Enoque Ventura, president of the Rural Family Home Association.
One of the project's recent highlights is the exchange program in Manaus, which included four young people: Gabriel Cunha and Mikaela Paixão, from the São Raimundo community (Mid-Juruá Reserve), and Raimundo Aquino and Kailane Araújo, from the Bauana community (Uacari Reserve), on a visit to the National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA) in the state capital. There, they learned about successful experiences in beekeeping, a sector still in its infancy in the region but with significant socioeconomic potential.
"I came to do an exchange program about bees and had no idea how important this chain is. It's been an incredible experience, and I'll definitely take this learning with me for life.", comments Kailane.
Honey extraction is an ancient practice in the Amazon. The new approach to the honey chain in the Middle Juruá region focuses on more sustainable practices through cultivation in honey farms and integration with Agroforestry Systems (AFS). In these systems, native bees coexist harmoniously with the vegetation, generating mutual benefits. Furthermore, cultivation has proven particularly attractive to young leaders, who connect with the practice with a vision of the future and community belonging.
"Considering the leading role of young leaders combined with biodiversity conservation is essential to transforming good practices into lasting solutions. When we can connect community leadership and territorial appreciation with economically viable practices, we promote socially just territorial development for the local population.", highlights Ronna Silva, coordinator of Territorial Programs at Sitawi.
This July, another practical step was taken: seedling production in nurseries, part of the strengthening of the reforestation and restoration chain. Also planned are workshops on pirarucu management and the production of best practice booklets, which will be distributed to schools and communities in the region, expanding the impact of the training.
By valuing local knowledge and connecting young people to opportunities within their own territory, Casa Familiar Rural reinforces that education is also a way to regenerate and experience the forest.
