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The first stage of Paraná’s Circle of 8 Ways to Change the World comes to an end with the participation of 4 thousand people. Leaders from all over the state participated in 17 meetings to articulate actions that will enable Paraná to meet the Millennium Objectives by 2010, 5 years ahead of the time forecast by the UN.

Maria Aparecida Zago, coordinator of the project, believes that the project’s objective of mobilizing the population to meet the Millennium Development Objectives has been accomplished, and that the only way of reaching them is by articulating the various sectors to put pressure on the public authorities in search of solutions.
The participants learned about the existing projects and also suggested ways to work out the problems they face. “We have several projects working on the Objectives, in partnership with city government, churches, and neighborhood associations. The event allowed us to learn more about the realities of the municipality and to accurately pinpoint where investments are required”, says Valter Peroger, mayor of Apucarana.

According to Peroger, after the start of the Mother’s School project, infant mortality rate in the city went down from 24 to 12 deaths for every 1,000 children born alive, besides reducing mother mortality too. “These figures show that by uniting, leaders from all sectors, community agents, business people, and teachers can change reality.”

The meeting was proposed by CPCE – Corporate Citizenship Council of Paraná, a consulting agency of the Federation of Industries of the State of Paraná, a joint production between FIEP and Orbis – Sustainability Indicators Regional Base Observatory, an IPD program. This is an unheard of initiative in the country. There are campaigns disseminating and enforcing the UN Goals all over Brazil, but this is the first time that a private institution of the size of FIEP has taken up the campaign.

Proposals - In order to ensure quality basic education for all children, the Piên region, in the state’s southeast, suggests better equipped schools to attract more students, and home visits to keep track of the children that are not in school.

Participants from Piraquara believe that by improving basic sanitation and providing better nutrition to children may contribute to reduce children mortality. For representatives from Toledo the priority was to the implement and braoden the services provided by the Pastoral, the Family Health Program, and other social support institutions.

The municipalities of São José dos Pinhais and Fazenda Rio Grande highlighted the work developed by environmental agents in partnership with community leaders as the best way of guaranteeing environmental sustainability. In Campo Mourão, developing local talents and strengthening public policies aimed at social inequality were listed as priorities to improve the quality of life of the local population.

Next Steps - The meetings of the Paraná Circle of 8 Ways to Change the World were held in Curitiba, and metropolitan area, and Irati, Guarapuava, Toledo, Bandeirantes, Paranavaí, Umuarama, Campo Mourão, Apucarana, Paranaguá, Ponta Grossa, and Coronel Vivida. In each of these places, Regional Centers were formed and are responsible for managing the actions suggested during the meetings.

Each center is challenged to fulfill the objectives by mobilizing the region. Its members will act as multiplying agents of the actions and projects proposed, and will be responsible for mobilizing civil society’s organizations, public authorities, NGos, and social movements. The centers are formed by representatives of each one one of the eight Millennium Objectives and are supported by FIEP. In August, during the activities of the Citizenship and Solidarity Week, the Regional Centers will carry out actions related to the Millennium Objectives.