The ELAS Fund's headquarters, a townhouse located in Botafogo, Rio de Janeiro, has been undergoing renovations since mid-April.
The renovation is taking place thanks to the hard work and dedication of many women who are sweating it out: workers from the Projeto Mão na Massa (Hand in Hand Project ) are responsible for the masonry work, renovating the electrics and painting the house.
The Mão na Massa Project is a pioneering proposal for professional training for women in the construction sector and was conceived by civil engineer Deise Gravina. Aimed at women between the ages of 18 and 45, with an education level equal to or higher than the 5th year of elementary school, the project is designed to provide professional training and insert quarrymen, formwork carpenters, painters and electricians into construction sites. The professional qualification is free of charge for the participants, who in addition to classes and a diploma, receive personal protective equipment and a toolkit to start work and generate income after the qualification.
"Both the Bolsa Família program and Mão na Massa were projects that enabled women to train and enter the construction industry. The ELAS Fund accompanied this process and we were invited to SECONCI to talk about gender equality in the construction industry. When it came to renovating the house, we thought it was extremely important to call on women, not men, in order to highlight the efficient, refined, responsible and budget-conscious work that women have done in the construction industry," says Amalia Fischer, general coordinator of the ELAS Fund.
In support of the ELAS Fund, which also works to empower women, our Mão na Massa partners donated part of their work. Over the planned budget of R$23,300.00, they gave a 40% discount, donating R$9320.00 to the ELAS Fund.
There are 15 bricklayers, painters, plumbers and electricians working on the renovation, led by Dirce Glória dos Santos, who chose to collaborate with the ELAS Fund for a very special reason:
"We made this donation out of a sense of gratitude. A few years ago the Mão na Massa project received support from the ELAS Fund. Thanks to this project, I entered the construction market. After receiving my certifications and working for a major construction company, today I'm here giving back to society the support I received, precisely for the organization that helped train me," says Dirce Glória, who is setting up the first women's cooperative in the construction industry in Rio de Janeiro. "This is our first project as a cooperative. We all came from the same project," she explains.
The renovation of the headquarters also has the precious support of Juliana Câmara, architect and partner of the production company Folguedo. Juliana is responsible for the new design of the house, which she developed voluntarily and in dialog with the entire ELAS team. She supports the actions of the ELAS Fund and shares the idea of "Giving for change".
“A parceria da Folguedo com o Fundo ELAS no projeto de reforma da sede em Bo