Flavia Ramos is a social educator who designs, facilitates and produces innovative programmes focused on water and youth. She co-founded Coletivo Regenera Rio Doce and Aliança Rio Doce — organisations that raise awareness about one of Brazil’s largest socio-environmental disasters: the 2015 collapse of the Fundão dam, which released 60 million cubic meters of mining waste into the Rio Doce.
With a background in Social Communication, Cooperation Pedagogy, Historical Culture, Dance and Ancestral Practices, Flavia also researches somatic practices to provide support and safety for individuals dealing with trauma.
Flavia is one of our Aura Fellows, having completed our holistic nine-module programme designed to nurture and empower female leaders. In this Aura Spotlight interview, we delve into her experience.
How has Aura transformed your relationship with yourself?
Aura has allowed me to open myself up for nourishing my selfcare and my mental health. It has been a learning process to learn how to receive care and support even though so many people need to be taken care of (and maybe they deserve or need more than I do — so I continually find it hard to stop working!).
Has your perspective on activism changed?
I got sick and had burnouts many times and felt frustrated to not be able to give more, do more, solve more issues. So I deepened my perspective on how self-care and well-being are essential to be able to serve others and to the causes I stand for.
Could you share an experience from Aura that felt particularly transformative?
3 things!
The retreat in South Africa! Where we could connect to each other, laugh together, have great conversations and moments of care and connection.
I also consider it amazingly transformative to learn with and create bonds with women from other territories within the Aura fellowship circle.
To facilitate a circle with other women in my city, offering care and support to many that have never experienced receiving deep listening and this kind of care.
What does feminine wisdom mean to you? Why is it important today?
More than feminine wisdom, I look at how women grow together — the challenges we face and resilience we have to build living in a patriarchal and misogynistic world. As women, we learn to offer care without being paid fairly or paid at all for it.
Our wisdom is to keep offering care and support without forgetting about ourselves and the value we deliver.
It's important that women keep nourishing support for each other, that we accept each other's vulnerabilities, value ourselves as professionals and communicate limits without feeling guilt. It's important we keep trusting the power of supporting each other, as we grow stronger together! And, by having others to look at as a mirror, we keep remembering to embrace our selfcare as a deep commitment with our lives and health.
One piece of advice you would give to another woman starting her Aura journey?
Open up your heart to share life and be yourself in a safe space. I trust the diversity of the group will nourish you and embrace your vulnerability and strengths.
Read Flavia’s article: “Can a river die? The call for an emotional rescue with the waters”
