Paes de Carvalho State School gains 'Circular Room', legacy of COP30 for education
The Circular Room is an initiative of the Educare Network, in partnership with the Government of Pará, which stimulates knowledge through reading and technology
With over 2,000 students, the Paes de Carvalho State School (CEPC), in Belém, has just gained a new space for learning and creativity: the Circular Room. The environment was inaugurated this Monday (10), and represents a permanent legacy of the 30th United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP30) for the school community in the region, uniting reading, technology, sustainability, and innovation in the same space.
In operation since July 28, 1841, when it was called Liceu Paraense, "Paes de Carvalho" is one of the most traditional public educational institutions in Pará.
The Circular Room is an initiative of the Educare Network, through the Educare Institute, in partnership with the Government of Pará, via the State Department of Education (Seduc).
The State Secretary of Education, Ricardo Sefer, highlighted, after the inauguration of the space, the importance of partnerships that value public education and encourage youth protagonism. "Our partners are always welcome. Education is built with collaboration, creativity, and purpose. This space symbolizes the future we want, connected, sustainable, and with the student at the center of the learning process," said the head of Seduc.
Literature and virtual tour - The Circular Room is an interactive environment that stimulates knowledge through reading and technology. The space features a cinema, maker area, virtual reality glasses (3D), and 1,200 books, in addition to digital tools that allow immersive experiences, such as a virtual tour around the world with content on sustainability, biomes, and environmental practices.
The space is open for public visitation during the COP30 period. After the event, it will remain available to the school community.
The Deputy Secretary of Collaboration Regime (Sarc), Diego Maia, emphasized the impact of the partnership. "It is yet another space born from an institutional partnership, which provides students with an immersion, a journey into the virtual world with perspectives on sustainable practices, forests, and climate. We are increasingly bringing students into this reality, so they can experience the context of climate change in their daily lives, in practice," he added.
According to Kátia Rocha, founder and executive director of the Educare Network, the project aims to connect books, digital media, and environmental care in a circular and integrated way. "We thank the school and the secretary for their warm welcome. The Circular Room was created to encourage reading, stimulate young writers, and provide a space for creativity and belonging. We want students to see themselves as protagonists of knowledge," she explained.
"Living space" - Regarding student protagonism in the construction of the space, the director of CEPC, Alinne Castro, said that "the youth actively participated in the creation of the Circular Room. They chose the themes, the books, and the resources they wanted to see here. It is a living space that connects reading, digital culture, and sustainability. During the Freezone Cultural (set up in Praça da Bandeira, in front of the school, for the environmental conference), the space will be open to the public, and afterwards it will remain as a legacy for our school," she informed.
In the students' assessment, the new environment represents a unique opportunity. According to student Daniel Mendes, from the 3rd year of high school, "the Circular Room encourages reading and creativity among students. The maker space, the books, the digital resources, and the cinema make learning more interactive. It is a legacy of COP30 that will stay with us and the community."
The coordinator of Project Development and Framing, Mariana Batista, reinforced the importance of the space for young people. "The project was designed to bring circularity through books and reading, uniting environmental care and knowledge. In such a digital world, resuming the habit of reading is essential for the development of students," she emphasized.
In 18 years of operation, the Educare Network is present in seven countries, with over 3,000 trained teachers and 372 units installed in public schools.
