Documentary shows sustainable entrepreneurship in Rio

The documentary film CenaRIO: Sustentabilidade em Ação, (CenaRIO: Sustainability in Action, in a literal translation)  produced by UN (United Nations) Centro Rio +, shows the power and creativity of 16 small entrepreneurs who adopt a more conscious approach in their business activities in Rio de Janeiro. For six months, 30 students from the Escola Nacional de Seguros traveled through Rio de Janeiro and the neighboring Baixada Fluminense region on a campaign for the UN 2030 Agenda.

Wielding their smartphones, students made videos about creative initiatives and businesses that play a special role in building a more sustainable world. The footage amounts to 25 minutes and was released Wednesday (Sep. 21) in downtown Rio.

The multimedia production, backed by the Escola Nacional de Seguros in a pilot project from the United Nations Development Program (PNUD), is part of the legacy left by the Rio+20, the UN conference held in the city four years ago, in which the foundations were laid for the global agenda on the preservation of natural resources of the planet up to 2030.

Everything started with student training, said Layla Saad, vice-director at the PNUD World Center for Sustainable Development – Centro Rio+. “We showed them the principles of sustainable development.” The group was subsequently asked to take to the streets and film the initiatives and projects they believed to be in accordance with those principles, “which [aim] to harmonize economic, social, and environmental peace,” she said.

The result of this sustainable eye on Rio based on images taken with mobile phones shows cases as Márcia Marinho's, who produces about 500 bags per month using discarded canvas from advertising banners as her raw material. The work was recorded by student Amanda Stenkopf. "She transforms canvas into items that we, women, usually use. Those who use the bags will be also spreading a concept," said the student.

From production to handcrafts and architecture, the film reports cases of successful commitment to sustainability. The documentary will be aired in all 166 countries involved in activities with UNDP, which also intends to export the model of commitment of the young people who produced the film.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira / Amarílis Anchieta