As the sun began to rise across the horizon it was the time for the group to pack all their belongings and head to the community of Tumbira. The car, crowd-funded by participants Camila and Pedro, was waiting to drive all the people and backpacks to the pier where the fast boat was ready to begin the journey down Rio Negro.

Raquel had gone earlier and was already waiting for the rest of the crew. As soon as everyone arrived, they went to their camp receive the second part of the welcome kit : a brightly colored hammock made by a group of women from different riverine communities and a huge mosquito net. Working together, participants and the coordinator of the school nucleus, Cristiano, started setting up the hammocks.

Once the hammocks were set up, everyone gathered in the classroom where some Tumbira’s students, teachers and leaders greeted the participants with a special welcome ceremony for the Amazon Summer School. Each student introduced themselves, and as each said his or her name...

After some unofficial meetings at the hostel over the pool table and breakfast tables in the day and some some meals together in the center of Manaus by night, the course officially launched on the morning of July 12th at the Sustainable Amazon Foundation (FAS) headquarters.

After a quick physical warm up with a dynamic called the social justice stretch, the group was invited  to actively listen, witness and absorb the words of Diversity Welcome. This framing reminds listeners that the spaces people work and live in are not always enough to truly manifest whole selves or identities. The intention to invite diverse perspectives and human spirit to the program was set by naming, speaking power to and inviting the parts of people that are visible but often pushed to the margins or ones that are invisible.

Each person had the chance to present themselves and check-in about what energy they were bringing to the first day and to the course. After some introductions about the agenda and journey...