Students
Current Students at UNICATA
The university is expanding with students in different regions are also showing interest in UNICATA. The university is currently fostering a student community from São Paulo and Brasília.
The pilot of module 1 in São Paulo, held between April and June 2023, saw the graduation of the first class on August 12, 2023, with 22 students completing their studies. In September 2023, another class began in São Paulo, also from Module 1, boasting 16 enrolled students. Moving to Brasília, in October 2023, module 1 commenced at the headquarters of the Associação e Cooperativa Recicle a Vida where 21 students are currently enrolled.
Some Stories Generated By The Students
SR. ANTÔNIO FERREIRA DO NASCIMENTO
Autonomous Waste picker from Vila Prudente
“The waste picker is ashamed of his profession and keeps hiding, because of prejudice. Sometimes he stays indoors and we ourselves are further reinforcing the prejudice. We need to educate ourselves.”
MARIA MÔNICA DA SILVA
President of Cooperfenix in Diadema
“I graduated on the street and my doctorate was waste collection. The contract with the city government forces us to become professionals, for example, in accounting and the preparation of invoices.
PEDRO
Self-employed Waste Picker, Luz Divina, São Paulo
“Let’s value ourselves. My father used to tell me to study, otherwise I would pick up bottles and cans – and today at the University of Waste Pickers I study to pick up cans and bottles.”
DONA ANA
Cooperative Coopercata, Mauá
“I evolved in pain. Before the contract with the city hall, they didn’t see us. Today, they continue to see us as “poor things” and not as professionals. We have a contract with the city hall, but prejudice continues. ”
DONA OLINDA
Waste picker in Novo Horizonte Group, São Paulo
“Selective waste collection is raw material for social inclusion.”
UNICATA
A university with and for waste pickers