Brazilian Beach Community Thrives on Faith, Cooperation and Ingenuity  | |
Algae harvesters in northeastern Brazil gather around one of their cooperatively-owned fishing boats.
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For the past fifty years, Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur have empowered the people of Maceió through Bible study, community organizing, educational programs, financial assistance and business savvy. Establishing cooperatives such as the Association of Cultivators of Algae of Maceió (otherwise known as "ACALMA") is part of the Sisters' strategy to help indigenous peoples prevent developers from seizing their rightful lands. Watch a 45-second clip of algae harvesting.
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The Lace Makers of Brazil
 Women in Brazil have been tatting or making lace for centuries. Before the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur helped the women of Maceió organize into a cooperative, individuals sold their lace for a pittance to intermediary buyers. The intermediaries would then transport the women's handwork to city markets and export it overseas at an astronomical markup -- keeping all profits for themselves. The women's lace cooperative is now an autonomous organization, no longer relying on the Sisters' help.
 The Maceió lace makers carry their threads, pins, bobbins and pillows to the beach, where they create their wares while guarding their community land from developers. As long as the community occupies its designated area of the beach, no one may trespass or seize the land for development. This means round-the-clock vigilance. Watch a 35-second clip of lace-making on the beach in Brazil.
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