Papel de Menino Institute

Padaria Escola Pão Nosso

Providing justice-involved youth professional training and cultural activities before and after their sentences to facilitate their growth and re-entry

In 2009 there were 16,940 criminal-justice-involved adolescents in Brazil, with his number reaching 26,868 in 2015. Of these, 9,918 are in the state of São Paulo. Theft and robbery led 49% of these youth to enter the criminal-justice system, while infractions related to drug trafficking are responsible for an additional 24%, according to 2018 data from the National Office for Children’s and Adolescents’ Rights.

Instituto Papel de Menino believes that rekindling dreams and reorienting perspectives offers youth an alternative to this situation. The institution works with groups of 12 to 21-year-old adolescents and young adults with the state organization Foundation CASA. Through professional baking courses and life-skills projects the institution creates job opportunities and fosters social skill development for life after detention when they are employed in partner bakeries. This project will extend its work into the municipality of Franco da Rocha.

With support from BrazilFoundation, the project will:

• Provide baking courses for 40 justice-involved adolescents;
• Perform needs assessments for youth via workshops addressing their family context, educational development, psychosocial needs, work relationships and references, and future professional expectations;
•Provide follow-ups and mentoring after sentence completion;
• Help 50% of participating adolescents to enter the workforce;
• Systematize and share the learning model with others.

Impact

500 adolescents already reached
40 youths graduated and starting new chapters in their lives
Youth entering the workforce and studying

“Our greatest assets are the reintegrated boys. The rate of social impact that each young person not engaged in crime generates is very high.” -Instituto Team