Posted by Rachel
Today we’re going to look at one of Rio de Janeiro’s most successful non-profit organizations.
Afro Reggae started as a newspaper in the Vigario Geral favela in Rio, discussing Afro-Brazilian culture and music, like reggae and hip hop. The movement itself was inspired by a police massacre in the favela that left a group of innocent civilians dead. In 1993, a community center was created for the community’s children, to provide them with cultural activities and opportunities they wouldn’t otherwise have. The center offered dance classes, drumming instruction, and soccer games. It later expanded to favelas in other parts of the city and now has 65 current projects.
The NGO now offers a wide variety of cultural and educational activities, including theater classes, homework help, and circus classes, besides dance, percussion, and performing opportunities. It also has partnerships with other non-profits and private companies to help urbanize favelas and offer residents new opportunities. The organization seeks to use social projects and development to reduce violence and poverty.
Afro Reggae is also a popular bloco (street band) that attracts thousands of people to a local parade during Carnival, and also performs at venues in Brazil and internationally throughout the year.
The NGO was featured in a full-length documentary called “Favela Rising.” Check out the trailer below and look for the movie on DVD.
To visit Afro Reggae’s official website, click here.
Posted by Rachel
Luta pela Paz, also known as Fight for Peace, was established in the Complexo de Maré favela in Rio de Janeiro in 2000. One of the city’s most violent favelas, many teenagers with few job or educational opportunities join drug trafficking gangs and work as soldiers for traffickers. 
To combat this, the non-profit Luta pela Paz provides an alternative for at-risk teens by offering education, job training and access to the job market, leadership training, and above all, sports, including boxing, capoeira and martial arts.
Program participants have the opportunity to train as athletes and to be students in order to prevent them from becoming involved in drugs and violence. Some have been so successful that they have gone on to become professional boxers, with some poised to compete in the next Olympics.
In Rio, there are currently over five hundred students in the program, aided by the opening of a new sports and education center in 2005. The program has been so successful that it recently expanded to London, where it serves poor youth.
For more information, see the official website.
Posted by Rachel
Today, we’re starting a new series where we look at grassroots NGOs operating in Brazil.
The Projeto Beija-Flor, or the Hummingbird Project, is a part of the Children at Risk Foundation, created by Gregory Smith in 1993 in São Paulo. The purpose of the organization is to defend street children’s rights, to give street children an education and provide solutions for children at risk. After founding the Street Migration Prevention Program, Smith expanded the program into the Hummingbird Arts & Cultural Activity Center, which now serves 600 children. In 2007, a second NGO was established, the Hummingbird Cultural Network, to create a group of community centers for homeless youth.
The Beija-Flor Project offers many programs for the children involved, including dance, music and art classes, and is best known for its capoeira courses and drum bands. There is also academic support, academic scholarships, and technology courses. This year, the project will also offer programs to teach children about health, the environment, nutrition, social communication and income generation.
For more information and to see how to help, see:
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