The dream
Mawu was born from the meeting of two women: Ana Sofia and Alícia, and it grows with every encounter with people who resonate with and feel connected to the shared dream.
Mawu was born in December 2022 when Ana Sofia and Alícia joined forces to support a transformative educational project. However, this story begins much earlier, back in 2014, when Alícia had her first child, Martim. At that time, she was living in Brazil and discovered an educational culture focused on children's well-being, dedicated to providing a healthy, harmonious childhood connected to nature. Upon returning to Portugal, Alícia sought a similar experience for her energetic, curious son, who didn’t like being in enclosed spaces. The places she visited didn’t prioritize outdoor contact, playing in the dirt, getting wet in the rain, or the freedom to be oneself. When she enrolled Martim in a nearby school, she noticed his sadness and difficulty adapting, which highlighted that the school environment didn’t offer the freedom he needed. She tried another school, but with similar results.
In her third attempt, she found a place that was different from the traditional system, where her son felt comfortable. Unfortunately, after just over a year, that school closed, leaving the family once again without options. This search for an alternative educational space ignited a desire within her to dive into the world of education and children's well-being. With a degree in Law specializing in Human Rights, she was able to combine her knowledge with new complementary training, such as Nonviolent Communication, Conflict Mediation, Living and Conscious Education, Forest School, among others. It was then that she decided to create her own space and reconnected with Ana, a partner in creating a unique path.
It was 2016, and Ana Sofia found herself with her 3-year-old daughter and a newborn baby, questioning the education of her children and whether existing programs were suitable for their home practices. Her daughter started attending a kindergarten that aligned more closely with what Ana believed to be the ideal for her education. To be more involved in her daughter's life, Ana began teaching yoga for kids at that school. She quickly realized how little time the children spent outdoors, as they were mostly confined to the classroom. Júlia, her daughter, began bringing home pretend play games, lining up her dolls and covering them, reflecting her bedtime routine at school. Drawings, which had once been an important form of expression for her, were now deemed "wrong" in the school's eyes, crumpled up and thrown away. Faced with these challenges, Ana sought alternatives and discovered a Waldorf kindergarten, which changed the course of her educational journey. She recognized the responsibility of creating an unconventional space that emphasized community management and involved all families. This experience reinforced her dream, and as time went on, Ana stayed attentive to her daughter's learning desires, allowing her to help shape the next steps.
Upon reconnecting with Alícia, they decided to collaboratively support the creation of an educational project in Fafe, Portugal. They experienced three intense years of learning alongside their children. During this time, they learned about managing unconventional educational projects. From 2019 to 2022, Alícia worked as an educator at the school, gaining knowledge and confidence to create her own project, while Ana Sofia nurtured her dream of sustaining an educational space connected to nature. In 2022, with the support of their long-time companions Jorge and Simão, this dream became a reality through Mawu: an educational space dedicated to adding more colors and nuances to a childhood world that is often black and white. It’s a place for children to awaken the artist within them and expand their immeasurable capacity for creativity and imagination. It is a space committed to liberating children's imaginations.