Projeto BIRA (Brincadeiras Infantis da Região Amazônica) is all about playful exchange, an effort to document and share the games and play cultures of Amazonian communities in the north of Brazil:

This project is totally focused on games that are carried out by children, in areas where spontaneity is the principal means of communication and where the forest and its embellishments are the source for materials and challenges that motivate a diverse range of actions. These actions are easily recognized by parents, grandparents, and ancestors who play along in some form, even if it’s only through a look that conveys the recognition: "Ahhh, I know how to play that." [StreetPlay.com]

Brazilian educator Renata Meirelles and American documentary film-maker David Reeks started the project in 2001 with an eight month tour of sixteen marginal communities in the states of Pará, Amapá, Amazonas, Roraima, and Acre, where they lived and played with children of the communities while sharing the toys and games of the other regions in Brazil.

"We recall a little top made from a tucumã seed, painstakingly cut and drilled by children of the Galibi (from Oiapoque) and the Wapichanas (from Roraima). Its spin generates a fascinating scream that can be heard from afar, and it is at least one example of how games open paths that don’t deplete the pleasure and beauty of one’s actions, while leaving conversation open with the cultural, historical and social dialects of each people’s tradition." [StreetPlay.com]

The Project is collecting material and stories to publish a book and a documentary film. In the meanwhile, you can visit the Projeto BIRA website (available in English e em português), which includes a diary of Renata and David’s travels, pictures of games and toys of Amazonia, and letters and drawings from children.

When we last heard from Renata and David in January, they were once again traveling throughout Brazil, no doubt playing all the way!

More images are also available from StreetPlay.com.