Audio program brings information related to the Covid-19 pandemic to traditional peoples and communities and family farmers throughout Brazil.
One of the stories that can be heard at Canto da Coruja Comunidade is about how family farmers in the interior of Minas Gerais managed to continue generating income while ensuring quality food for families in more vulnerable situations during the Covid-19 pandemic.
This weekly audio program is primarily aimed at traditional peoples and communities and family farmers throughout Brazil. The programming covers health guidelines for preventing Covid-19, sharing experiences and strategies for communities to generate income during the crisis, as well as clarifying political proposals that address the safety of traditional populations.
“This is a very important communication tool for giving visibility to the agenda of peoples and communities. Promoting information and inspiring with experiences is essential for us to think about the protection of these groups,” says Dionete Figueiredo, manager of the Sustainable Family Farming Cooperative based on Solidarity Economy (COPABASE), a civil society organization that supports farmers in Minas Gerais.
ISPN collaborators, researchers, and, primarily, representatives of traditional peoples and communities and family farmers are interviewed. This ensures a plurality of information for political and social education. It also amplifies the voices of these peoples, building a perspective of communication made for and with these groups.
The "Canto da Coruja Comunidade" (Owl's Song Community) is developed by the Institute for Society, Population and Nature (ISPN) with support from the Philanthropy Network for Social Justice (RFJS). The three-minute programs circulate via WhatsApp, community radio stations, and the organization's and partners' social media. These platforms are best suited to engage with the populations and have the greatest potential to disseminate the song, strengthening the democratization of access to information.
The context for the Canto da Coruja Community event could not have been more fitting: in 2020, the planet faced the greatest health crisis of the 21st century. The discovery and rapid spread of the novel coronavirus has already affected thousands of people in various countries. And those in the most vulnerable situations, with less access to health supplies, water, and even guidance and information, are the most impacted.
In Brazil, we find many of these groups in rural areas. They are quilombola communities, indigenous people, artisanal fishermen, and various other traditional peoples and communities, as well as family farmers who, in addition to facing the Covid-19 pandemic, are also experiencing a complex political moment for their realities. And it is precisely to them that Canto wants to reach.
According to a study by the Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon (Coiab) and the Amazon Environmental Research Institute (IPAM), the average mortality rate from Covid-19 among indigenous people is 150% higher than the national average. Among quilombola communities, the chance of a person belonging to one of these communities dying from the disease is four times greater than that of a white, urban person, according to Fiocruz.
Given this complex context, the importance of investing in and supporting processes that prioritize social transformation, strengthening the protection and guarantee of rights, and democracy itself becomes evident. This is a period when opportunities arise to strengthen and expand, for example, philanthropy for social justice.
"It is at this moment that we realize the importance of, for example, the RFJS, which managed to provide a quick response to the needs of the people." in the form of emergency support projects for nutrition and health in communities, and also in the dissemination of important information to help them overcome this challenge.“Comments Fábio Vaz, executive coordinator of ISPN, which is part of RFJS.
By democratizing access to information, the Canto da Coruja Community subsidizes communities for political action and the fight for rights, while also supporting the strengthening of community networks and organizations.
The Covid-19 pandemic came like an earthquake. However, there are those who are in the political, social, and philanthropic movement to overcome this moment, investing in actions and initiatives that increasingly guarantee access to rights. And the more people with guaranteed rights, the closer we will be to a society with equity and social justice. Let the Owl's Song echo so that people may have the right to soar above the earthquake.
Listen to the Owl's Song Community
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