In June 2026, the story of a Kokama leader crossed the Atlantic. At the Brazilian Embassy in Berlin, more than 160 Brazilian children discovered the Amazon as it truly is: a living territory, told through the voice of someone who calls it home.

Author: Ana Carolina Cavalcanti
Léalo en Español. Leia em português.

Amazon Week for Children brings together Brazilian families living in Berlin and the surrounding region. In its 2026 edition, the program was inspired by The Mucuracaá Bath, written by Marciane Kokama, a Kokama leader and one of our Biodiversity Guardians, whose story introduced children to the cultural richness of the Indigenous Peoples of the Amazon.

The project was born from a simple idea: that the stories of Indigenous women from different regions of Latin America can become bridges between realities, values and ways of seeing the world. Living bridges, woven through storytelling, connecting territories, memories and different ways of inhabiting the Earth. In Berlin, that bridge crossed the Atlantic.

Ana Rosa, Director of Meli Bees Network, represented our network at the event, bringing Marciane Kokama’s book together with the other five titles that make up the Biodiversity Guardians collection. The event was hosted by Yana Marull and combined videos, music, creative activities, painting, learning experiences and a live reading of the book—offering children the opportunity to discover the Amazon through the people who know it from within.

“It was beautiful to take part in Amazon Week and witness how important it is to reconnect Brazilian children living in Germany—including many whose families come from the Amazon—with their roots. Representing Meli and bringing Marciane Kokama’s story from the Upper Solimões was incredibly meaningful. Seeing the outcome of a project we developed years ago now being celebrated by children, and watching the author become emotional as her grandmother’s story reached the other side of the world, was unforgettable.”

— Ana Rosa, Director, Meli Bees Network

The audience’s enthusiasm moved everyone involved. Children filled the room with thoughtful questions, comments and genuine curiosity throughout the activities. In total, 260 people attended the event, including 160 children.

“I liked it because the story was a mix of fiction and non-fiction, and I learned about herbal baths.”

— Piero, 9 years old (son of a Brazilian mother and a Greek father, born in England and living in Germany for the past two years)

“We wanted children and young people to experience the real Amazon—not a cliché or a superficial image of it. Their curiosity and engagement truly moved us.”

— Yana Marull, event facilitator

Amazon Week for Children is the result of people coming together around a shared dream: ensuring that Brazilian children growing up abroad understand that the Amazon is not only a forest, but also a place of living cultures, languages and stories.

“For anyone raising children abroad, helping them understand what it truly means to be Brazilian—in all its diversity—is a huge challenge. Opportunities like this, where children discover Brazil from the inside through the experiences of people who actually live these realities, are incredibly valuable.”

— Lara

Watching more than 160 children connect with the story of a Kokama grandmother, told by the granddaughter who grew up to become both a community leader and an author, was a powerful reminder of something we already know: Indigenous knowledge has much to offer the world—including children growing up far from Brazil, but who proudly carry their roots wherever they are.