Victor Felix
Life Sciences
Victor Felix’s work emerges as a force for integrating knowledge about the soil, adding indigenous wisdom to scientific and traditional knowledge. Inhabitant of the Paraíba city of Baía da Traição and a descendant of the Potiguara people in this state, Felix wants to expand the ecology of knowledge about the soil by validating the understanding that traditional people have about their territories. It is a project that emphasizes pedology more and strengthens indigenous communities’ voices, recognizing their ancestral wisdom and autonomy to decide and choose paths in their territories—an invaluable contribution to a more sustainable and equitable world.
He graduated in agroecology technology from the Federal Institute of Paraíba and has a master’s and doctorate in soil science from the Federal University of Paraíba. Combining traditional and academic knowledge to build more sustainable and resilient systems, the agroecologist’s work is not limited to the laboratory or universities; Felix has been leading socio-environmental projects in a Potiguara village for two years, demonstrating his commitment to the community and the preservation of traditional knowledge.
Projects
The goal of this project is to connect the intercultural communication and education experiences of Selvagem — Cycle of Studies on Life, scientific projects on ecology, soil science, sustainability, and Indigenous knowledge in Paraíba, and efforts to reconnect the Potiguara people with their native language.
The proposal involves producing scientific communication and educational materials through foundational workshops for a Living Potiguara School inspired by similar initiatives to strengthen indigenous knowledge. The project will include collaboration with Serapilheira fellows in the Potiguara Indigenous Land and UFPB Campus IV, where Selvagem members will conduct workshops to produce a notebook focused on the biocultural transformation of the Potiguara Indigenous Land, integrating biodiversity and ecosystem restoration with cultural revival through reconnecting with the native language.
Amount invested
Indigenous and traditional populations have accurate knowledge about their territories, and the field of ethnopedology studies this knowledge about the natural resource “soil”. The project aims to validate the production of knowledge originating from indigenous communities, contributing to more detailed soil mapping and enabling the construction of more sustainable and resilient agroecosystems in the face of the climate crisis. Furthermore, it strengthens the need to consider indigenous populations when making decisions about the management of their territories and the production of knowledge, therefore going against existing scientific colonialism.
Amount invested
Grant Faperj 2023: R$ 700.000,00
