How children stories written by Indigenous women open new perspectives for international education

Author: Ana Rosa de Lima
Leia em português. Auf deutsch lesen.

How can we help children understand the world as diverse, interconnected, and full of possibilities? This question lies at the heart of our project “Stories by Indigenous Women as Pathways for Global Learning.”

The project is grounded a series of children’s books written by Indigenous women from different regions of Latin America, as an outcome of the project Guardians do Biodiversity. These stories open spaces for new perspectives: on the relationship between humans and nature, on community, language, and knowledge. Nature is not a resource, but a living presence. Knowledge is lived and passed on. Women act as guardians of memory, culture, and care. These perspectives invite us to question dominant ideas of development and progress and to explore alternative ways of living together.

As part of the project, we are organizing a series of online workshops for multipliers—including educators, parents, caregivers, and volunteers. In these sessions, participants engage with the stories and explore key themes of Global Learning:

• Diverse ways of life
• Connection with nature
• Biodiversity and food systems
• Linguistic and cultural diversity
• Women as knowledge keepers

Participants learn how to use these stories in their own work with children—whether in classrooms, early childhood education settings, or family environments. The focus goes beyond storytelling itself, encouraging dialogue, creative activities, and shared reflection on global interconnections.

A key element of the project is exchange: participants bring in their own experiences, reflect on how children respond to the stories, and collaboratively develop new approaches. In this way, learning becomes a shared process rather than a one-way transfer of knowledge.

In the long term, the project aims to support children in engaging with global perspectives from an early age—and to equip adults with the tools to guide them. Because Global Learning does not begin in textbooks, but in the stories we share and the questions we explore together.

Interested in bringing these stories into your work with children?
We welcome collaborations with educational institutions, initiatives, and individuals.

Lear more about each event:

22/05: Online learning: „me trepo y me aviento“

• Guest: author Yazuri Reynosa Sánchez
• Hosts: Ana Rosa de Lima and Laura Atzin Soto
• Release of animation „me trepo y me aviento”
• In collaboration with Storytelling activity in Landshut

05/06: Online learning: “Das Bad aus Mucuracaá”

• Guest: author and cacica Marciane Kokama
• Hosts: Ana Rosa de Lima and Laura Atzin Soto
• Part of the Amazon week 2026
• Release of animation „O banho do Mucuracaá”
• In collaboration with Storytelling activity in the Brazilian Embassy in Berlin

26/06: Online learning: “Cuando el Río tenia Anonas”

• Guest: author Gabriella Martinez
• Hosts: Ana Rosa de Lima and Laura Atzin Soto
• Release of animation „Cuando el Río tenia Anonas”
• In collaboration with Storytelling activity in Düsseldorf

31/07: Online learning: Lessons and Learnings from Storytelling

• Guest: Camilla Saloto
• Host: Ana Rosa de Lima and Laura Atzin Soto