Uerê – Supporting the “Children of Light” in Brazil

Continental supports the Uerê education project in Brazil that specifically serves children and young people aged between six and 18 from disadvantaged social backgrounds.

Dr. Yvonne Bezera de Mello founded the Uerê project (Children of Light) in Rio de Janeiro in 1993 and developed the Uerê-Mello pedagogical approach for working with traumatized children. She works with her team at a school in the favelas to support around 430 children and young people who are growing up in an environment marked by poverty, violence and marginalization. Almost all of the pupils suffer from post-traumatic symptoms and associated learning difficulties.

As a second step, Dr. de Mello has developed a training program for teachers at other schools based on her findings. Thanks to its success, the Uerê-Mello approach has been officially recognized as a pedagogical method in Rio de Janeiro.

The project has proven extremely effective, and Uerê has been internationally recognized as a model school by UNESCO.

Continental’s support consists of three pillars:

1. Scholarship: Financing university studies for 15 high school graduates
2. Pedagogy: Implementing the Uerê educational method at two schools near Continental locations
3. Training: Currently, 22 graduates of the Rotary school are completing an apprenticeship at the Guarulhos Continental location. Furthermore, Continental also plans to offer graduates of the Rigolin school the ability to complete an apprenticeship at its factory in Salto.