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3rd Awareness Cycle assembles 1,500 people in Rio Grande do Sul and goes on to Santa Catarina and Paraná

Four seminars on tobacco farmers’ occupational health and safety and child and adolescent protection were held in Rio Grande do Sul. In August, the program will go on to Santa Catarina and Paraná

July 2011 – The 3rd Awareness Cycle on farmers’ occupational health and safety and child and adolescent protection came to a close in Rio Grande do Sul with an audience of 1,500 attendees. The Cycle’s last event in the state was held on July 6, in Alpestre. In the first semester, seminars were also held in Agudo, Progresso and Canguçu. In August, the Awareness Cycle will take place in Santa Catarina and Paraná for the first time:

The event was sponsored by SindiTabaco (Interstate Tobacco Industry Union), associate companies and Afubra (Brazilian Tobacco Growers’ Association), and includes the participation of tobacco farmers, health agents, tutorship council agents, unions, school principals, authorities, agricultural advisors from associate companies and the press, which was invited so as to participate and spread information.

To SindiTabaco’s president, Iro Schünke, the experience in Rio Grande do Sul was very positive. “This work gets progressively better with time. At the moment, we have reached 1,500 people, but that number grows when considering the events in 2009 and 2010. We will continue to work hard, because we believe it is important to be aware of the issues related to tobacco’s sustainable production, as a means of protection for our business”, he pointed out.

In 2009 and 2010, the participating cities were Vera Cruz, Caiçara, Sobradinho, Camaquã, Venâncio Aires, Arvorezinha, São Lourenço do Sul and Frederico Westphalen.

SCHEDULE

Following the formal opening, a video was shown on farmers’ occupational health and safety, with the participation of agronomist and Senar (RS) instructor, Paulo Rosa; the video addresses issues related to the proper application and storage of toxic products, the destination of packages and the correct use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), as well as the necessary precautions with the harvest. The event continued with a lecture on child labor and the rights of children and adolescents. In Santa Catarina and Paraná, this lecture will be delivered by Prof. Dr. Ana Paula Motta Costa, who holds a BA in Social Sciences from UNISINOS (1990), a Law degree from PUC-RS (2000), a Specialization Degree in Education from UFRGS (1992), a MA in Criminal Sciences from PUC-RS (2004) and a PhD in Law from the same university (2011). The funny side of things was presented by Espaço Camarim, a drama group from Santa Cruz do Sul, presenting Rádio Fascinação.

The 3rd Awareness Cycle meets the requirements of the agreement established before MPT-RS and is part of the Growing Up Right Program, a joint initiative between SindiTabaco, associate companies and Afubra, and is aimed at preventing and fighting child and adolescent labor in the cultivation of tobacco, by means of raising awareness among integrated farmers and society, as well as social projects on education and leisure. This is the Cycle’s 3rd edition, which has taken place in twelve other cities of the State of Rio Grande do Sul, assembling around 5,000 people.

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