Description
Terra Luminous (ITL) is a socio-environmental institute, a NGO formally founded in 2016 (operating since 2013) to support the conservation of one of the last remaining stretches of the Atlantic Rainforest in Brazil, through programs and activities in the areas of environmental preservation and regeneration, agroforestry, education, self-knowledge, social development, community building, eco & regenerative tourism and economy solidarity.
We are here for local development in a sustainable way so that we can all live in harmony with the standing and healthy forest!
ITL is located in the buffer zone of the Environmental Preservation Area of the Coastal Mountain State Park and in the São Paulo Metropolitan Watershed Protection Area.
Located at the Juquiá and Ribeira River Basin, which has the highest water availability per capita in the State of São Paulo, largest city in South America (more than 22 million people).
ITL has 130 hectares of Atlantic Rainforest and monitors another 500 ha of neighboring lands, in the most preserved section of the São Paulo metropolitan region and the most threatened by rapid and disordered urban growth.
The Itariru Green Belt Program is the major socio-environmental program and was created in 2018 with the purpose of expanding and guaranteeing the protected area, forming a model that can be replicable to other regions, amplifying the positive impact!
ITL has built a Wellness & Education Center which operates since 2013 offering and hosting retreats, courses and events contributing for the counsciousness increase and financially supporting the basic environmental monitoring.
In 2015 the Luminous Ecovillage was born with the 5 initial founders of ITL, manifesting the Regenerative Culture Base in a life style coonected with nature. Nowadays there are around 15 people living at Terra Luminous Ecovillage and in 2022 the first children arrived announcing the future is here and now!
“Since 2015 we are an Empty Center Organization and our management is based on Sociocracy, focusing on equivalence, effectiveness, co-responsibility, self-organization and transparency. Care for relationships is anchored in the practice of Nonviolent Communication, Restorative Circles, Zegg Forum and other social technologies. And the Permaculture principles orient our major agreements and decisions.” say Fabiana Maia, co-founder and Institutional Coordinator.
