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Popular University of Social Movements (UPMS)

UPMS Website

UPMS Website

The Popular University of Social Movements (UPMS) was created within the World Social Forum (WSF) in 2003, with the aim of promoting shared knowledge and extending, linking and strengthening forms of resistance to neoliberal globalisation, capitalism, colonialism, sexism and other relations based on domination and oppression. The UPMS concept of co-learning seeks to bridge the divide between teacher and student and among various knowledges. Following Boaventura de Sousa Santos proposals, is based on ideas of reciprocal learning and “ecology of knowledges”. Its starting point is the recognition of mutual ignorance and its end point is the shared production of knowledge. Learning results from debates between activists, leaders of social movements, social scientists, intellectuals and artists. The dialogues established between academic knowledge and popular knowledge should reduce the distance between them and make academic knowledge more relevant to concrete social struggles. The UPMS operates by holding workshops, preferably lasting two days, in which discussion periods alternate with time dedicated to study and reflection, and leisure activities. The UPMS is a collective asset. Anyone may take the initiative to organise workshops, provided that they respect the two fundamental PUSM documents: the Charter of Principles and the Methodology Guidelines.

Further readings:

Santos, Boaventura de Sousa (2006), “The World Social Forum and self-learning: the Popular University of the Social Movements”, in Santos, Boaventura de Sousa, The Rise of the Global Left, The World Social Forum and Beyond. London: Zed Books.

Video-presentation about UPMS

Video in English

 

 

 

Video-letter presentation about UPMS

Video in Portuguese

 

UPMS Brochures

Arabic | English | Portuguese | Spanish | French

 

UPMS workshops organised or co-organised by ALICE Project:

2012 – Workshop on “Land and Food Sovereignty, Human Rights, Solidarity/Popular Economies” held in São Leopoldo (RS – Brazil) on 22-23 Janury as part of the “Social and Environmental Justice” Thematic Social Forum (Brazil). Participants came from Latin-America, Europe and Africa. Workshop organised by the ALICE Project. Related information available here. (in Portuguese)

2012 – Workshop on “Interculturality, Plurinationality, Afro-Descendants/Indigenous Peoples and Sexual Dissidence” held in Canoas (RS – Brazil) on 22-23 January as part of the “Social and Environmental Justice” Thematic Social Forum (Brazil). Participants came from Latin-America, Europe and Africa. Workshop organised by the ALICE Project. Related information available here.(in Portuguese)

2012 – Workshop on “Ecology, Mother Earth, Natural Resources, Extractivism” held in Porto Alegre (RS – Brazil) on 22-23 January as part of the “Social and Environmental Justice” Thematic Social Forum (Brazil). Participants came from Latin-America, Europe and Africa. Workshop organised by the ALICE Project.Related information available here.(in Portuguese)

2012 – Workshop on “Health, Sustainability and Quality of Life” held in Aldeia Velha (Rio de Janeiro – Brazil) on 14-15 June as part of the People’s Summit. Workshop organised by the University of Brasília (UnB), the Ministério da Saúde (Brazilian Ministry of Health) and ALICE Project. Related information available here.(in Portuguese)

2013 – Workshop on “Letters to the Europeans” held in Leiria (Portugal) on 23-24 February with European social movements and intellectuals. Workshop organised by Decoloniality Europe and the ALICE Project. The letters to the Europeans written for the workshop are available here. Related video and information are available.

2013 – Workshop on “Gathering voices from the Global South” , on the dignity, held in Tunis (Tunisia) on 24-25 March as part of the “World Social Forum”. Workshop organised by El Taller International and the ALICE Project. The letters on Dignity and Democracy are available here. See related video and related information.

2013 – Workshop on “Letters to the Europeans” held in Madrid (Spain) on 15-16 June with European social movements and intellectuals. Workshop organised by IEPALA and the ALICE Project. Further information here [in Spanish]. Related news in Publico here. Related information available here.

2013 – Workshop “Ecology of Knowledges Network – Observatory of the National Health Policy for Rural and Forest Populations“, held in Fortaleza, Brazil, June 27-28. The workshop was promoted under a partnership between the University of Brasilia (UnB) and the Ministério da Saúde (Brazilian Ministry of Health). Related information available here. (in Portuguese)

2013 – Workshop on “The land and its appropriation/privatization” held in Maputo (Mozambique) on 25-27 July. Workshop organised by Fó­rum Mulher, União Nacional de Camponeses, Justiça Ambiental and the ALICE Project. Related ALICE NEWS available here (in Portuguese). Poster and related information available here. (in Portuguese)

2013 – Workshop on “Self-determination and Development” held in La Paz (Bolivia) on 17-18 October. Workshop organised by Cordinadora de la Mujer (Bolivia) and the ALICE Project. The letter written collectively by participating movements/organizations is available here. Related ALICE NEWS available here (in Spanish). Poster and related information available here and here. See related video: “Voces de/a la Madre Tierra“. (in Spanish)

2013 – Workshop on “The Humans Rights in Movement: the Organisations, the Institutions, and the Street” held in Brasilia (Brazil) on 1-4 November. Workshop organised by Conselho Nacional do Ministério Público (Brasilian Natioal Council of Public Ministry) and the ALICE Project. The letter of the social movements to Braziliam system of justice. Related ALICE NEWS available here [in Portuguese]. Poster and related information available here and here. See related video. (in Portuguese)

2013 – Workshop on “Political-Military situation and its relationship with the boom of natural resources in Mozambique” held in Tete, Mozambique, on 28-30 November. Workshop organised by Associação de Apoio e Assistência Jurídica as Comunidades (AAAJC), Fórum Mulher, Justiça Ambiental, União Nacional de Camponeses (UNAC) and the ALICE Project. Related ALICE NEWS available here. Related information available here.(in Portuguese).

2014 – Worshop on “Land Displacement in India”, held in Mumbay, India, on 14-15 February 2014. This workshop was organized by the Tata Institute of Social Science and the ALICE Project. See 25 videos-contributions here. Related information available here.

2014 – Workshop on “Unlearning Capitalism! Building Alternatives on Good Livings”, that took place between 12-13 April 2014 in Quito, Ecuador. Jointly organized by the ALICE Project and Fundación Rosa Luxemburg. Media files are available here. Related information available here.(in Spanish)

2014 – Workshop on “Interculturality: Diversity, Spaces, and Knowledge”, occurred between 12-13 Septmeber 2014 in Cuiabá, Brazil. Jointly organized by the ALICE Project and the Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT). Media files are available here.

2014 – Workshop on “10 Years of UPMS and Popular Education” and “Dialogue of knowledge and movements”, held on between 22 and 27 September 2014 in Lima, Peru. Jointly organized by the ALICE Project and by PDTG Peru. Media files available here. Related information available here.

2014 – Workshop on “Health and Citizenship: popular reflexions on participation”, held on 03-04 December in Brasília, Brazil. Workshop organized by ALICE Project and by Ouvidoria Itinerante do SUS. Media files are available here. Related information available here. (in Portuguese)

2015 - Workshop “Culture, Culture Rights and Culture of Rights – Culture Policy and Policy of Culture”, Rio de Janeiro Workshop, October 30th, 2015 and November 1st, at the Museu Casa do Pontal, organized by the ALICE Project. Media files available here and here. Related information available here. (in Portuguese)

2015 – Workshop on “Education, Social Movements and Human Dignity: 40 years of education in Cape Verde and post-2015 challenges” held in Espinho Branco, Rabelados, Cape Verde, on 12-14 July. Jointly organized by ALICE Project and IUE, UNILAB and FLACSO. Media files available here and here.

2016 – Workshops on “The Popular University of Social Movements and the future of education of popular university.” and “The journey of Popular University of Social Movements: Reflection and balance”, held in Porto Alegre, Brazil, on 20-22 janury. Jointly organized by ALICE Project and UPMS. Media files available here.

2016 – Workshops on “Territory, Culture, Rights: Intercultural Education in Minas Gerais”, held in Xakriabá territory, São João das Missões, Minas Gerais, Brazil, on 15-17, April. Jointly organized by ALICE Project, Observatório da Educação Escolar Indígena (Faculdade de Educação da UFMG/ CAPES) (Observatory of Indigenous Education – Faculty of Education UFMG / CAPES), Organização da Educação Indígena Xakriabá (OEIX) (Organization of Indigenous Education Xakriabá), Federação das Comunidades Quilombolas do Estado de Minas Gerais – N´Golo (Federation of Quilombolas Communities of the State of Minas Gerais). Media files available here and here. Related information available here. (in Portuguese)

2016 – Workshop “Challenges of the left front of the new political landscape: Criminalization, extraction and precariousness of life”, held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, 15-16 April. Jointly organized by ALICE Project and Universidad de Buenos Aires. Related information available here.

2016 – Workshop “Rural and urban land conflicts”, held in Los Aromos, Córdoba, Argentina, 7-9 April. Jointly organized by ALICE Project and Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (UNC). Related information available here.

2016 – Workshop “People Land Seeds Food”, held in Harare, Zimbabwe, 12-14 July. Jointly organized by ALICE Project, Zimbabwe Organic Farmers Forum (ZIMSOFF), Rural Women Assembly (RWA- Zimbabwe), African Institute of Agrarian Studies. Related information available here and event poster here.