The Agentes da Transformação project, carried out by Instituto TIM in partnership with Pereira Passos Institute (IPP) in Rio de Janeiro-RJ, has a new partner in 2015: the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Collaboration takes place through Platform for Urban Centers (PCU), an UNICEF initiative that establishes partnerships with municipalities and Municipal Councils for Children and Adolescents Rights in eight Brazilian cities to reduce inequalities that affect children and adolescents.
UNICEF participated in drafting the questionnaire this year and in the second phase of the training of young researchers, held between August 31st and September 4th. In the training, IPP presented data from previous years’ research and guided the scholars to implement the 2015 questionnaire, among other activities. The young students also learned to use the free software Para Pesquisa, developed by Instituto TIM especially for this project. UNICEF promoted the workshop “Skills for life”, focusing on the rights of young people to participate in urban management.
“We want to encourage them to realize that they are part of the community and can represent it. It is very important for them to be able to show the potential of young community people and how much they can contribute to society,” explains Luciana Phebo, national coordinator of PCU and UNICEF office coordinator in Rio de Janeiro. “Survey is a tool that helps young people know their strength and appreciate it. This participation is essential to reducing inequalities”, she adds.
The data collected will also be used by PCU and will contribute to the monitoring and evaluation of inequalities in Rio de Janeiro. “Data will be transformed into socially useful information to help communities meet their potential and needs. Each community has its profile, but to have these general data is a powerful force that can be used in different contexts,” says Luciana.
Field research
The second phase of the 2015 field survey of the Agentes da Transformação project has already begun. Until November 6th, 120 young researchers will interview residents of pacified communities of Rio de Janeiro who are between 14 and 24 years old. The goal is to collect data on the reality of young people in these communities.
The first phase of the project ended in August, when the scholars made the list of households to be interviewed. Now, the aim is to collect 6,000 questionnaires with questions related to household, family, education, work, time usage, connectivity, security, violence and community assessment. To submit the answers, the researchers use tablets with the Para Pesquisa app.
There are 12 new participating communities in 2015: Jacarezinho, Turano, Penha, Roquete Pinto, Vila Kennedy, Timbau, Caju, Chapéu Mangueira/Babilônia, Arará/Mandela, Macacos, Alemão and Barreira do Vasco. Learn more about researches carried out in 2013 e 2014 (links in portuguese).
