Productive Backyard Project

The State Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Maranhão - IEMA is an agency linked to the State Department of Education - SEDUC, it is an institution that aims to offer professional, scientific and technological education at secondary and higher levels publicly, free of charge. and quality, seeking the social, technological and economic development of the state of Maranhão located in the northeast of Brazil. Yes, our team works with IEMA to execute the project

With the implementation of the project to benefit this group of 20 young people with the Autistic Spectrum, we are mainly solving 4 problems, which are: FIRST: Promoting the inclusion of special needs young people in a job that will certainly provide them with an improvement in their health conditions and, consequently, in their lives : SECOND: We will be providing food security for these young people and their families since Mothers, brothers, Fathers and relatives all end up benefiting from the project and who will also serve as tutors for each of the people involved in the proposal. THIRD: The strong contribution that the project offers to the fight against climate change thanks to the process of capturing rainwater, solar energy to guarantee irrigation and the non-use of any type of agrochemicals in the cultivation of family farming products with proper food production healthy throughout the year, given that here in the region we faced 6 months of severe drought and 6 months of heavy rain, hence the need to capture, store and use rainwater to be able to implement irrigation during the 6 months of drought. AND FOURTH: A project with a high social reach with the production of healthy foods, soil conservation due to the non-use of agrochemicals, benefiting 20 young people on the autism spectrum and their families with the total involvement of their mothers, ensuring their food and nutritional security being able to generate income with the surplus production achieved and also constituting an inclusive action, promoting equity, combating poverty and enabling these young people to have real dignity accompanied by human rights, a policy that cannot be denied to people in these conditions such as the case of the group of 20 young people with the Autism Spectrum. It is a proposal with a high scale as long as it is properly implemented in any region of the planet, especially those with the greatest food shortage.

Our idea is to seek to include 20 young people on the autism spectrum who were trained with a technical course in agriculture, completed their course load with a supervised internship, had a graduation party and everything. However, after the course, these young people were left with no exemption in either the job market or occupation. The Mothers' report is that the development of the activities during the long course, they showed considerable improvements in their health status due to the fact that the activities functioned as therapy. Because these young people are extremely special, we are presenting The Productive Backyard Project, which constitutes a social technology with rainwater capture and solar energy, to implement irrigation, allowing the production of healthy food throughout the year, benefiting young people people on the autistic spectrum and their families with the total involvement of their mothers, guaranteeing their food and nutritional security with the generation of work and income and also constituting an inclusive action, promoting equity, combating poverty and generating work and income . An initiative that promotes the insertion of these young people and their Mothers into the job market, inclusion in public policies for the commercialization of family farming products, aiming to improve the quality of life of young beneficiaries and their Mothers, based on production family, fair gender relations and respect for cultural diversity, which ends up being indisputably one of the missions of the Productive Backyard Project aimed at young people with the Autistic Spectrum. Emphasizing that it is an action to actually take place, in the backyard of the beneficiaries' homes or very close to them. We understand that being able to enable a project of this nature for this group of young people is offering dignity to those who need it so much and directly benefiting the families of these young people who fight so hard for an activity that can also serve them in terms of therapy.

The solution serves an audience that this time we can say is more than special, as there are 20 young people on the Spectrum and other neurodivergent people who have an atypical neurocognitive status. In addition to them, it obviously also directly includes their family members. Despite the impact that will be generated in the aspects already described here as promoting food security for these young people and their families. The strong contribution that the project offers to the fight against climate change thanks to the process of capturing rainwater, solar energy to guarantee irrigation and the non-use of any type of agrochemicals in the cultivation of family farming products with the proper production of healthy food Last year, given that here in the region we faced 6 months of severe drought and 6 months of heavy rain, hence the need to capture, store and manage rainwater in order to implement irrigation during the 6 months of drought. Even with all these aspects, we consider that the greatest impact will be due to the process of inserting young people on the Spectrum and other neurodivergent people who have an atypical neurocognitive, we repeat, more than special, making them feel useful to their families , their teachers and the society around them. We strongly believe that this is the greatest impact to be provided by the project defended here.

Here is the point that we can speak with great propriety, based on what we have described: The State Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Maranhão - IEMA, is an organization with its management board made up of black women, teachers and staff in quantity and capacity to the application, development and good management of the project called Productive Backyard for young people on the Spectrum and other neurodivergent people who have an atypical neurocognitive status. Therefore, we guarantee that both equity and leadership are factors that are highly regarded by the IEMA Organization in all the activities it proposes to develop in its 43 teaching units present in 45 municipalities in the state of Maranhão. As a Technical Assistant for the project, I will work with our team in line with the IEMA guidelines in what is best for the complete execution and success of the project. We guarantee this through our vast experience in the scope of Rural Extension and the implementation of other similar actions with satisfactory results from the same project among other categories of people. Our proximity to the communities of the beneficiaries is precisely due to the vast experience in Ruarl Extension over more than 30 years and we have covered in practice almost all 217 municipalities in the state of Maranhão. As team leader, we always apply the participatory methodology, where the community has a strong representation, participating decisively in discussions, giving opinions and offering suggestions and using the decision-making power given to them. Given the facts that are extremely true, we can once again offer the guarantee that the entire IEMA team is ready to perform well when conducting the Productive Backyard project for young people on the Spectrum and other neurodivergent people who have an atypical neurocognitive status.

Thank you, good question: The choice of the internship above is because this is a proposal that we know well. About 20 years ago I personally started the first scribbles of this project and over time we improved it until we considered it ready to be worked on. We have already applied it to the category of family farmers, but not in this version with rainwater or solar energy to implement irrigation, but the rest of the proposal is in the base tables and we have always obtained good results. As for the public served, we can say that we serve a good public in many municipalities in the state and the beneficiary communities continue with their actions, although we have to admit that over time a low number of beneficiaries leave the project and join other initiatives that could arise, we also cannot deny that it actually occurs

Ah, SOLVE, it is now breaking not just a barrier, but perhaps the biggest trench, which is the viability of partnerships for support including financial, technical, cooperation for purposes and other types of support that for organizations in our region (northeast of Brazil) , everything is always a bit very difficult. So we are seeking SOLVE's support precisely because we fully understand the power of partnerships, even more so a partnership with an organization of SOLVE's weight that, from everything we see, has human capital (teams) made up of multi-professionals to operate in a large part of the world. . Because we have already imagined what we will receive if our solution is indeed selected. We will look for new directions and possible continuations with partners with the potential to analyze our project and then be able to obtain the results we are looking for. SOLVE is a partnership that, as opportunities arise, we will always seek your guidance and participate in your calls, which are always attractive to certain audiences, where this Productive Quinttal project for young people on the Spectrum and other Neurodivergents who present an Atypical Neurocognitive, really constitutes in a proposal beyond the special

We consider it differentiated (new innovative), due to the following aspects: Here in the northeast region of Brazil, we have two well-defined seasons: There are 6 months of heavy rain and 6 months of total drought: Therefore, the Idea seeks to solve the problem of lack of water with social technology, with the advent of rainwater capture and solar energy, guaranteeing irrigation and the consequent conditions for producing healthy food even during the dry season. In fact, we don't know anything similar here. It still adopts a production system without using any type of agrochemicals, being a production based on organic/biological fertilizers and lastly and most importantly, benefiting a public by increasing the inclusion process, which are young people on the Spectrum and other Neurodivergent people who present an Atypical Neurocognitive, who are outside the possibilities of a better quality of life and encounter with a therapy that can promote motivation for life, including, by extension, all their close family members and relatives. It is in this context that we see our solution as extremely innovative, even if it is not something that can change the market (national, international), but that at a local level there are guarantees that the impacts generated in these 20 families through the improvement of living conditions health, food security for these young people, we can believe that these will be highly relevant impacts in these possible 20 communities or a little less since there may even be more than one young person in the same beneficiary community, we guarantee that.

Gain for the Target Public: It appears that the impact of Organizations that work on education, such as IEMA, is great, it is something of extreme importance, the care, dedication and attention to what is passed on with the creation of solutions that always manage to include the majority, which without a doubt is always a great offer of gains for this beneficiary public, especially when it comes to a specific project for an audience such as young people on the Spectrum and other Neurodivergent people who present an Atypical Neurocognitive. Like the activity, the work changes their lives: One way to know that the work is in fact being relevant, generating the positive and expected impacts for the community, is when it becomes clear the evolution of the procedures to be perceived that the Organization in In the case of IEMA, what cannot be left aside is the focus on the community (its audience), to which it is directly linked, it is necessary to integrate with this community and truly be part of it, to the point that everyone feels attracted to the work that is being carried out. proposed / developed by the Organization, this is a sign that something is being good for them (this is a concrete change): How This is measured, or should be measured: Obviously, each activity developed requires a metric to evaluate the process, which can vary from monitoring to measure the degree of satisfaction of beneficiaries to comparative numbers with before and after the action carried out: What indicators will we use: As our actions are different, we will also apply different metrics for our results evaluations, namely: So that in a general context , the actions developed through the Productive Backyard Project aim to: a) impact a strong problem of social exclusion that exists in our society, including governmental, which is social exclusion that is fully accentuated in the case of young people on the Spectrum and other Neurodivergents who present an Atypical Neurocognitive , due to the conditions of being special, their families end up being made invisible by society, public authorities and in some cases even by the families themselves due to the fact that they do not know the means to face the process of exclusion, as well as the conditions that do not allow for a better treatment of their children and/or wards: b) Another scope/impact is that young people and adolescents with the professional qualification received can move towards equal opportunities in the job market and social life, thus being able to live and sleep the sleep of the just: c ) With the project for the production of healthy food we aim to offer the guarantee of food and nutritional security to the families of 20 young people and with the surplus production to be able to achieve a higher family income in relation to their current condition

So let's try to adapt our impact goals to the SDGs that we list, even though we haven't listed them here, but let's try to remember:
1- Eradication of Poverty: It is clear that the moment we create the conditions for the production of healthy food, we will be attacking the problem by guaranteeing food security for families and generating income from surplus production: 2- Zero Hunger and Sustainable Agriculture : Even similar to the beginning of the other SDG, as we create the conditions for the production of healthy food, we will be attacking the problem by guaranteeing food security for families and moving towards a considerable reduction in hunger. Sustainable consists of the production system used using rainwater, solar energy for irrigation and no use of pesticides; 3- Health and Well-Being: It is the main aim of the proposal, to provide these young people with the opportunity to carry out activities so that they can also provide therapy to contribute to the improvement of their health and well-being: 4- Quality Education : More than ever the proposal fits with this SDG, these young people in the conditions they live in face a true process of exclusion, both boys and girls, so the proposal frames the sexes and with the educational method of LEARNING TO DO / DOING we will be generating learning opportunity: 5- Gender Equality: As I said in the previous item, the proposal embraces both sexes, as it is notably the existence of boys and girls in communities both with the Spectrum status and other Neurodivergents who present an Atypical Neurocognitive; 7- Clean and Affordable Energy: Already very well described in all parts of the project, it will be based on solar energy, which is clean because it is renewable and accessible for the bill values of the beneficiaries' homes, who will then pay much less; 10- Reduction of Inequalities: It is very clear that a proposal like this aimed at an audience with this profile, if implemented, will be a great advance in combating social inequalities; 13- Action to Combat Global Climate Change: Also well commented on within the project, with actions to produce healthy food in a sustainable way, which consists of a production system based on rainwater harvested, solar energy for irrigation and non-use of pesticides, with the permanent preservation of the soil, we will be consolidating actions to Combat Global Climate Change.

To properly carry out the project called Quintatal Productivo to assist 20 young people with the Spectrum State and other Neurodivergent people who present a Neurocognitive Disorder, we will use technology using nationally manufactured equipment and materials such as:
a) Kit of equipment and materials for capturing solar energy;
b) Kit of irrigation equipment and materials;
c) Equipment kit for rainwater capture;
d) Construction of a reservoir to store rainwater;
e) Kit of small agricultural equipment;
f) Acquisition of organic/biological-based inputs;
Now we cannot fail to mention here is the strong presence of water, because here in our region, as we have already described in other paragraphs of the text, we have two well-defined seasons which are 6 months of rain and 6 months of total drought, in these 6 months of drought makes it almost impossible to produce any food due to the lack of water. This is undoubtedly a technology that seems simple but which for us will be highly relevant, as the use of rainwater will make a difference in the lives of the families of young people with the Spectrum condition and other Neurodivergents who present a Neurocognitive, they are the most direct beneficiaries of the project. Another technology that may also seem not so innovative, but certainly has a huge impact on the design of the project, is the adaptation of the cultivation system based on organic/biological products, which in our region is not very common, we have to have of the conditions as it is a very special audience to implement this type of activity, especially when dealing with small areas, such as the areas to be cultivated by young beneficiaries and their families

For direct participation in the execution of the project with full-time work, we have 2 agronomy professionals, 2 social workers, 1 part-time employee, 2 part-time volunteers each and we can also involve 2 part-time interns in a rotating manner. faculties of Agricultural Sciences. Still in the form of volunteers, we will be calling on professionals such as Psychologist, Physiotherapist and Neurosurgeon, who, in addition to normal monitoring, can assess the health conditions and behavior of young people through their participation in the project.

15 years ago I started making the first notes on this proposal, but just remember that up until now we have not worked on it with rainwater capture technology, nor solar energy, but with the presence of other equipment and materials included in the project and the recommendation not to use agrochemicals. This period serves our work and some social organizations with which we work here, there was no presence of IEMA, which in this case is the organization that carried out the training of young people on the Spectrum and other Neurodivergents who present an Atypical Neurocognitive

We have already presented our team both from the point of view of multi-professionalism, as well as quantity and consequent quality, we know them with their due capabilities and we have a healthy environment to carry out the activities for which we will be assigned, this is our guarantee as I work leader of this team. Diversity is guaranteed with the presence of social workers, department coordinators of the organization, and also the strong presence of the General Director of IEMA who is a black woman, all focused on the same objective which is to be able to perform our functions with dignity and provide opportunities for these 20 young people with the Spectrum condition and other Neurodivergents who present an Atypical Neurocognitive, a change in their lives expanding their families, of course, for this we will have the valuable contribution of each one of us. When it comes to diversity, it is already a policy developed by IEMA in its education system, looking for human attributes such as cultural aspects, traditions and group identity. This policy is proven when the courses are installed in the municipalities, where the curriculum curriculum is created based on existing local/regional customs and potential. As for equity, this is exactly what occurs in IEMA's educational policy, enabling the most vulnerable population and residents in peripheral areas of cities to have access to quality education with technical courses for free and full secondary education. In the scope of inclusion, we can describe that our inclusive policy is very strong, as evidenced by the training that was provided to this group of young people with Spectrum status and other Neurodivergent people who present an Atypical Neurocognitive Disorder, something that many government bodies want to give attention. But that's not all, IEMA is even working on SRF rooms – Rooms with Multifunctional Resources for disabled students, including classes in Braille and many other actions with the character of inclusion, fulfilling the role of an educational organization that really seeks to offer an environment where no Only professional teachers and staff feel good, but also the school community feels welcome, respected, supported and very valued

Our business model is to work with communities in a state of greater social vulnerability, support these communities in the educational sphere by providing access to public education policies with their aspects such as: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion among other actions that characterize a pressing need for these communities and populations distributed in the 45 municipalities of the state of Maranhão, northeast of Brazil, places where we already have 36 teaching units for a network of 20,000 enrolled students. Our services offered to this population are in the educational scope with free and comprehensive secondary, technical education. Thus, we employ our strategic vision of seeking sufficient and necessary support to be able to promote the teaching-learning process of the educational system that we deliver to young people in this age group from 12 to 25 years old.

The evidence we will present that the plan is being successful is based on the premise of the results obtained in the previous initiatives we developed. Because our calculations are that each young person covered by the project with their family can produce the minimum elementary of 300 kg of family farming products / month, which if it were fully commercialized, which will not be the case, we would have an income of U$$ 1 / kg of product, equivalent to U$$ 3,600 / year, we consider that the production surplus corresponds to 30%, the value of which will be reserved for the financial sustainability of the project, this is the first point to be considered. At the moment we are only looking for subsidies to be able to develop the project, but in the future, in addition to continuing the fundraising process, we will also seek other accessible sources of financing that exist on the market. But the truth is that because IEMA is an Educational Organization, we will always be advancing in our requests to obtain subsidies, this does not prevent us from presenting the viability of our projects to which we seek to deliver communities according to each target audience. in the sources of subsidies that they can offer us.