In 2001, historian Sylvia Guimarães, along with Laís Fleury, and Maria Teresa Meinberg (known as Fofa) left São Paulo to start a pilot education project in towns in Pará state distributing books in rural municipalities and training mediators on how to teach reading to children.

The following year, they dedicated another ten months to the initiative by visiting 53 communities in the Legal Amazon (the Brazilian Amazon region that corresponds to almost 60% of the country). This is how the Vaga Lume project started. With around 890 active volunteers, it currently serves 86 rural communities by providing spaces for reading and learning.

To learn more about the initiative, which completes 20 years in 2022, Lilian P., age 9, spoke to Sylvia, one of Vaga Lume’s co-founders. Lilian has already had the opportunity to visit one of the project’s libraries in the Amazon and has fond memories of the experience. “I thought it was cool that we painted our hands on the wall and left an important memory there and in my heart. I found it very unusual for the library to be in the middle of the forest. Many of the books that are read there, we also read here”.

Where did your inspiration to create Vaga Lume come from?

I have always liked travelling, nature. When I was young, I had already seen some books about the Amazon and I really wanted to fi nd out (about it). Then, as I was growing up, I decided that I wanted to be a teacher, because I liked working with children. And I got the idea that I wanted to be a teacher in places where people did not have access to teachers, schools and books. Then I met Fofa and Laís, the friends who had a similar dream to mine. Together, we created Vaga Lume.

Why did you choose the name Vaga Lume?

I thought children would understand what it was and would relate to it. Fireflies can only be found in the scrub or in forests; it is hard to see them in cities, where there is a lot of light. It is tiny, but gives off a lot of light! So, it is not a spotlight that would solve everything, it is like a little light that everyone has of their own, you know? And a lot of fireflies together can help illuminate (something).

How did you know where to place the libraries?

When we started Vaga Lume, we called city halls and inquired about communities that might want a library. After a while, we got to know the communities and began to ask within them, to the people in the Amazon that we knew, who was interested. Today, we will only set up a new library in communities that show interest: they write us a letter or set up a meeting and let us know why they want the library. Then we check to see if they have the conditions (including volunteers), and whether we have the resources to set up and maintain this library. In other words, it is a partnership: both sides have to want it for it to be successful.

Which types of books go to the libraries?

How do you choose these books? We receive a lot of books, we read a lot of books, we go to the bookstore every year and read everything there is, and then we see. Books must have really good recommendations on stories and illustrations. And they have to come from different parts of the world, from different peoples and origins, so people can know how diverse the world is. Also, we think of all children, from babies to teenagers. We want children to like books and be able to relate to books, letters, stories and people in the library from an early age.

How can Brazilian children help Vaga Lume?

Children can help just by getting to know Vaga Lume and joining it. Sometimes, we join something just because of the feeling, we cheer for that thing, then we communicate, spread the word, share it on Instagram. That is how it is today, right? When you spread the word about the things you believe in, you become a supporter.

How do you feel today, 20 years after starting this project? I feel very happy, because I see that the project has borne more fruit than I had imagined it would. It is like a tree that you plant and then you see how much fruit it bears. It is quite surprising, is it not? There are many children like you, Lilian, who have started to think of new things because of Vaga Lume. So this is very gratifying, because the more we become aware, the more we try to understand the world, the more the world can improve.

READ THE FULL IN TERVIEW ON JOCA’S WEBSITE: JORNALJOCA.COM.BR

Questions

1) How is the selection of books for libraries made?

a) Books have to have good recommendations about their stories and illustrations.

b) Every teacher in the community chooses a book.

c) The region’s children choose the books.

d) Only books with illustrations are chosen.

2) Do you visit libraries often? Why?

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