Brazil

lace: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Vila das Canoas (São Conrado district). Address and contact: Eneida Santos, Tel: 9848-6737, email: interrogation_7@yahoo.com.br Characteristics: The idea is to offer lodging for tourists in the houses of inhabitants of Vila das Canoas community, to show another image of the shantytown, to generate income inside the community and to facilitate the exchange of experience and knowledge, particularly in the area foreign languages learning. Function: This endeavor is community-based tourism initiative located in a shantytown. Summary of the initiative: The idea of lodging tourists in the houses of inhabitants of Vila das Canoas led the local community to organize themselves and mobilized them to carry out tourist activities with distinctive characteristics. The objective is to generate income for the community and, at the same time, to make possible the exchange of knowledge and the dialogue with the tourists (100% are foreign). Another goal is to enable the inhabitants to develop a new image of their home place (with an increase of self-esteem). Due to the place’s vicinity to natural attractions: Pedra da Gávea, Pepino beach and Tijuca Forest, this initiative also includes ecotourism activities. It thus helps to increase the community’s conscience about ecological issues. Main actors: The main actors are the inhabitants of Vila das Canoas, who offer room in their houses for the lodging of the tourists. A local group, led by Eneida Santos, organizes this receptive tourism initiative. This project receives support from the Afro-Brazilian Incubator (IA) and from the Gênesis Institute of PUC-RJ. It has also the support for advertising and divulgation from Rio de Janeiro municipal government. Creative community, why? Vila das Canoas community-based receptive tourism initiative fits in the Project for being an endeavor of the community itself that dared to consider to set in their home place a different activity (tourism and lodging in a shantytown). The consequences of the initiative brought benefits to the whole community. About the researchers Marcos Lins Langenbach (LTDS, COPPPE – UFRJ), e-mail: marcos@riocom.com.br Interview by telephone with Eneida Santos Interview done on the days 23 and 26 of April