São Paulo – Digital activities contemplating the education of children and teenagers, are among the aims of the group of experts that drew up the action plan for the recently established Arab Latinos project. Specialists from different Latin American countries completed and presented this Wednesday (24) an action plan for the project.
Arab Latinos was launched this week by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), at the headquarters of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC), in São Paulo. Initially, the project will assess the primary structures for promoting the contemporary Arab culture in Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Chile, and Colombia, but there are already expansion plans.
The scholar group also presented details on implementing the new project’s goals. “This initiative is important because it will enhance human and cultural values. In the beginning, we aimed to draft the Arab Latinos action plan. Still, the richness of our debates and their enthusiasm led us not only to conclude the action plan but also to start the operational plan,” recalled Angela Melo, director of Social Inclusion and Youth in the Social and Human Sciences sector of UNESCO and the new Arab Latinos project.
For the project’s scientific coordinator, Geraldo Adriano de Campos (opening picture), the initiative will be unprecedented and transformative. Campos is also a professor at the Federal University of Sergipe (UFS), where he directs the Center for Arab and Islamic Studies (CEAI).
“[The goals] go beyond academic knowledge up to artistic performances. We had a diverse group, with artists, curators, business people, journalists, and many who are personally connected to existing initiatives,” Campos continued.
Among the topics to be addressed by the group is the creation of awards in research and translation, in addition to holding events and presentations in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Arab countries.
Another point highlighted was the digitization of content and memory of the Arab community. “We are delighted to see we and our partners have already developed initiatives similar to those introduced by the project,” said the ABCC’s cultural director, historian, and curator Silvia Antibas, recalling initiatives such as the Digitization Project of the Memory of Arab Immigration in Brazil by the Arab Chamber in partnership with Lebanon’s Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK).
The Arab Latinos project also aims to strengthen ties and map contemporary intercultural dialogue between regions. “The Latin American Arab phenomenon is special. An example in a world where there is so much intolerance,” said Osmar Chohfi, president of the ABCC.
The initiative is carried out within the framework of the Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Program for strengthening the Arabic language at UNESCO and the United Nations Plan to integrate arts and culture in all programs.
Translated by Elúsio Brasileiro
