Women in Action: a community development project in Amazonas

This article is a report of a Community Development Project currently being run by the Centre for Studies and Development in Environmental Education (CEDEA), at the National Institute for Amazon Research (INPA) in Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil. The Centre was inaugurated 3 years ago as part of an attempt to change the Institute's direction, from that of carrying out research for the scientific community to one that integrates research with sustainable development and social needs. CEDEA's team members embarked on a participatory community project, INPA and Society, that was developed with a community near the Institute. This is an urban community with economic, social, cultural and environmental problems that the project aims to approach. INPA and Society is divided into several projects, one of which is Women in Action. This is a report about the challenges that Women in Action has produced for both the Institute and the Centre. It also discusses the results that are being achieved, while commenting on the difficulties that have been confronted and how these could possibly be avoided by other groups.