The Ecoa Maloca podcast, produced by indigenous students from Unicamp and coordinated by Labjor (Laboratory of Advanced Studies in Journalism) researcher Germana Barata and guest professor Juliana Sangion, was selected to be part of the exhibition Nhande Marandu – A History of Indigenous Ethnomedia, from the Museum of Tomorrow, in Rio de Janeiro. The exhibition opened in November last year and is open for viewing until the end of April. In February, with the support of the Unicamp rectory, part of the Ecoa Maloca team was received at the Museum for an in-person visit to the exhibition.
The exposure brings contemporary productions from different indigenous peoples, showing how they have done and still do analogue and digital communication. According to the Museum, the central thread of the exhibition is indigenous authorship. Using multiple languages, the exhibition features a collection of works by Denilson Baniwa, Ailton krenak, Zahy Guajajara, Sallisa Rosa, Jaider Esbell, Gustavo Caboco, Brisa Flow, among other contemporary artists and communicators.
O Ecoa Maloca podcast was nominated by the curators to be part of the audio and oral segment section of the Nhande Marandu exhibition. The collection brings together works that have in common the perspective of self-representation and that transcend the white, Western, Eurocentric model. The invitation reached the Ecoa Maloca podcast team in October, through Laboratory of Tomorrow's Activities (LAA) at the Museum. According to producer Laura Marques, from LAA, the curators were looking for different communication formats.
“We were looking for different formats throughout history, starting from the first indigenous radio stations, going through podcasts and arriving at these productions made by university students. Ecoa is a reference, especially because we know how difficult it is often to bring students together and carry out this type of production at a public university. Learning what indigenous students have to teach about media meets the objectives of showing these productions to the exhibition audience, so that they can see, hear and learn from them”, commented Laura.
For Nalbert Barreto, a History student at the Institute of Philosophy and Human Sciences at Unicamp (IFCH), who is part of the Ecoa Maloca team, the invitation reveals the interest and importance that the topic of original peoples has been gaining in society. “When it comes to ethnomedia, which is something we work with at Ecoa Maloca, the invitation becomes even more symbolic, as it demonstrates an appreciation for these activities and motivates us even more to publicize and learn from this enormous wealth that is the culture of indigenous peoples,” said Nalbert.
For the first time in the city of Rio de Janeiro, student Denilson Miranda, from the Pedagogy course at the Faculty of Education at Unicamp (FE), said he felt moved. “The first impression when visiting the exhibition was very incredible, seeing indigenous people represented here at the Museum of Tomorrow is fantastic. Listen to our podcast on-site visit It’s exciting, and having the size of the number of people who have come to visit the exhibition and listened to us is really cool”, said Denilson.
Researcher Germana Barata also highlighted the importance of the Museum of Tomorrow. “The Museum of Tomorrow is a reference in museography and scientific dissemination not only in Brazil, but in Latin America, and being able to be here and see it full, with this beautiful exhibition of images and sounds, and knowing that we are contributing to the strengthening indigenous ethnomedia is very special,” said Germana.
Ecoa Maloca Podcast
According to coordinators Germana and Juliana, the idea for the Ecoa Maloca podcast came about with the arrival, in 2019, of the first group of entrants approved by the Unicamp Indigenous Entrance Exam. Since then, several students have passed through Ecoa Maloca, which currently has four BAS (Social Assistance Scholarship) students, who can participate in the project for up to two years. A The proposal is, through the production of episodes, to train indigenous students as mediators of dialogue between Unicamp and society. The episodes (also available via Spotify) put into debate the challenges, social and research practices, indigenous and scientific culture, the diversity of cultures and visions necessary for the country's development. By bringing indigenous students to the center of audiovisual production, the project seeks to build channels of dialogue on fundamental issues for indigenous populations, research and society, with students as moderators and protagonists of this process.
Student Nalbert commented on choosing the podcast for his BAS scholarship. “Choosing Ecoa as a BAS project boosted my academic life in a very positive way, as it is something you need to study to write and dialogue. For those who come from the extreme north of Brazil, with a completely different lifestyle, arriving in Rio, going to the Museum of Tomorrow was the clearest impression that I am in the right place, and here I have the opportunity to make the voices of the forests echo in the midst of a Western society that needs the 'new' to look forward with other perspectives, an ancestral perspective”.
Juliana Sangion highlighted that the podcast is an opportunity to create and disseminate new understandings of the world. “Through Ecoa Maloca, I realize that we are contributing to new understandings of the world. As a communicator and audiovisual teacher, I think that exhibitions like this are extremely important to deconstruct the view that still persists in our society regarding original peoples,” she said.
LAA producer, Laura Marques, concluded by stating that “bringing university students, these young people who are producing, to join the exhibition is very important. We need to value these productions, enhance and strengthen them so that they continue, signaling how important it is to have this happening in Brazil.”
