Welcome to the Feigenhain Initiative

The Feigenhain Initiative is a non-governmental non-profit organisation registered in France, with activities in Brazil, France and Austria. Our campaigns focus on humanitarian aid and cooperation, protection of the natural environment, and technological solutions aimed at humanitarian aid and cooperation and the protection of the environment.

Support the Feigenhain Initiative
Ongoing Projects
Successfully concluded Campaigns
About Us
Team
Contact

Support the Feigenhain Initiative

You can help to fund our activities by donating once, or in a recurring way.
Choose the corresponding option in the Paypal dialogue box.

Ongoing Campaigns

Student Centre in Pedra Branca, Amapá, Brazil

School education in and around the indigenous land (terra indigena) in the federal state of Amapá in Brazil is offered in a modular fashion, where the students’ presence in classrooms is limited to four-weeks modules in each academic year. Students’ contact with the school itself is therefore restricted to the periods in which the teaching modules take place. Throughout the rest of the year, they are completely alone in their learning process. The positive aspect of modular teaching is that it interferes less in the traditional calendar that governs planting, harvesting, hunting and fishing activities. However, students remain long periods without being able to count on anyone to help them in their studies. Young indigenous students, as well as the students from the adjacent rural communities are left alone trying to cope with great difficulties in learning and in completing their various schoolwork. This problem is even more evident in the phases of final essays and dissertations, with the great distances existing between the student’s usual residence and that of the supervising teacher.

Through the construction of a student support centre we hope to be able to reduce this distance, accompanying those students with revision, homework, notions of computer use and help with completion of assignments. The Support Centre will also serve as a space for exchanging good practices between indigenous and non-indigenous students in the field of sustainable family farming. The motivation for this project is purely philanthropic, without any political or religious ties. The centre will be open to all students of the surrounding communities, regardless of their ethnic origin or belief.

In order to carry out this project, one of the founding members of the NGO Feigenhain, with long teaching experience in schools in indigenous villages in French Guiana and in Brazil, has identified a plot of three hectares of land in Tucano (1.098N, 52.403W) in the state of Amapá in Brazil, which is a rural settlement community adjacent to the indigenous land (terra indigena). The strategic choice of this location will allow the support centre to be easily reached by students not only from the indigenous land (terra indigena) but also from all its surrounding communities. The bus that makes the Macapá-Tucano line makes it easy for volunteer teachers to reach the Support Centre.

The structure to be built will be very simple: the centre will have a classroom, a small library, a computer with access to satellite internet, a kitchen, bathroom and a small accommodation for students, visitors and volunteer teachers. It will also be necessary to dig a small well.

The estimated cost for the construction of the Support Centre and purchase of the equipment is 12 thousand euros. We are transparent concerning our bookkeeping and regular reports will be made available for consultation online.

Contributors to this project who have some knowledge to offer to students in the region can stay at the Support Centre, give some of their time to students and then take the opportunity to get to know the region.

Please contribute to make this project come true.

Construction Update December 2020

The construction works in Amapá are ongoing. Your donations help us to advance the works of the educational center. Please continue to support us in our effort!

Long-term individual support

Feigenhain local staff identifies individual Brazilian Amerindians who are struggling with life and puts them in contact with sponsors who are willing to lend them a hand. We focus particularly on students and on elderly people.

Very few Amerindians students manage to make it to university, and the rare exceptions who do, face great difficulties in financing their studies. Your sponsorship helps them pay for their accommodation in town, for food and books.

Elderly indigenous people struggle when they suffer from new illnesses that traditional medicine is unable to deal with. Often penniless, they perish facing long queues to have access to public health care in Brazil. Your sponsorship helps elders to pay for medical exams, medication and to purchase food when necessary.

We provide you with regular reports on how the person you are helping is doing, and you may also choose to be in direct contact with them.

The way it works is simple: all you need to do is to set up a standing order for a monthly bank transfer to Feigenhain and we will look after the rest. You might choose whether or not to have your name listed in our website next to the person you are sponsoring. We follow up very closely to make sure your contribution is being spent for the right purpose, and we send you regular reports on that person.

Support to a Waura nursing student

Kuhupi Waurá is a young Amerindian from the Aldeia Pyulaga located in the Parque Indígena do Xingú in Brazil. Both his parents live in the Amerindian village, but Kuhupi has a dream which is to become a nurse. His plans are to go back to Xingú after he graduates.

He needs the equivalent of 300 Euros per month in order to pay for accommodation and food in Cárceres (Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil), where his university is. You can help sponsor him. We will keep you informed on how he has been doing at Uni. You can also be in direct contact with him. All you need to do is to set up a standing order for a monthly bank transfer in Euros to Feigenhain and we will look after the rest.

Support for the indigenous NGO APIWATA

Feigenhain supports the NGO APIWATA, an association created by an indigenous people in Brazil. Today, APIWATA acts mainly in logistical support for health and education, as well as the purchase of medication. You can contribute with any amount to support this initiative.

Successfully concluded Campaigns

Help Manoel

Manoel lives in the suburbs of Macapá, in the state of Amapá, one of the poorest regions of Brazil. His whole family depends on him. In poor health, for over two years Manoel has been unable to work with his right arm which was seriously injured by a dog bite. Manoel dreams of going back to work in order to help his family, but he has no resources for a surgery, which costs about 700 Euros. Our campaign will continue until we have enough money to pay for it. You can help us achieve this dream. By contributing to this specific campaign, your entire donation will be used for Manoel’s surgery. No sum will be used to cover other expenses or operating costs of the Association, which are covered by general donations, and members’ private resources.

Dental care for a young Amerindian in Brazil

Feigenhain raised the necessary funds for the complete dental treatment of a young amerindian person in Brazil. By contributing to a specific campaign, your entire donation will go to that campaign. No sum will be used to cover other expenses or operating costs of the Association, which are coverd by general donations, and members’ private resources.

About us

Feigenhain is a non-governmental non-profit organisation registered in France, founded on 12th September 2018 under the registration number W133028431. It is governed by the French Law of 1 July 1901 and the Decree of 16 August 1901 (Association loi de 1901).

Our aims are:

humanitarian aid and cooperation.
protection of the natural environment.
technological solutions aimed at humanitarian aid and cooperation and the protection of the environment.
running workshops aimed at safeguarding culture, intangible heritage, history, knowledge and know-how.
publication and sale of books, handcrafts and online advertising space, with the aim of financing our activities.
crowdfunding campaigns to finance our aid and humanitarian cooperation projects and the protection of the environment.
any activity that may be directly or indirectly related to the development of our organisation.

Team

Cássio de Figueiredo

Founding member
Master of Research in anthropology and Bachelor of Law
cassio@feigenhain.org

Gregor Koenig

Founding member
PhD in biomedical engineering and MSc of applied computer science
gregor@feigenhain.org

Contact

Address

Feigenhain Initiative
23 Rue Sainte Francoise
13002 Marseille
France

Bank

Feigenhain - Initiative
IBAN : FR76 1027 8089 9300 0205 6400 194
BIC: CMCIFR2A
RIB : 10278 08993 00020564001 94
Bank: CCM Canebière, 65 La Canebière, 13001 Marseille, France

Email

contact@feigenhain.org or

feigenhain@protonmail.com