A story made of real breakthroughs
For three years, Acelen Acender has been building a history of progress together with the communities surrounding the Mataripe Refinery.
The Mataripe Refinery is the only one in Brazil that has private social equipment aimed at training, socio-productive inclusion, and strengthening the surrounding communities: Acelen Acender. In three years, the project already has more than 2 thousand and 100 hours of classes and 768 students graduated, benefiting residents of São Francisco do Conde, Candeias, Madre de Deus and the islands of Salvador through programs such as Jornada Jovem Acelen, Acelera OSC, and Rede de Valor.
But the greatest result of Acelen Acender goes beyond numbers: it is in the stories of those who discovered new paths, developed their potential, and found opportunities to transform their own future. Learn about the real advances that Acelen Acender has already promoted in people’s lives.
Adriel’s journey of self-discovery
Acelen Acender arrived in Adriel’s life at a crucial moment. A recent graduate who was anxious about personal issues, he discovered the project through a link shared in a WhatsApp group. As he sought more information, he was introduced to the Jornada Jovem Program and saw in it the opportunity he was looking for to develop his knowledge and successfully start his professional career.
According to the young man, Acelen’s greatest impact on his life was the participation in Projeto de Vida (Life Project), which led him to delve into self-knowledge and self-diagnosis practices and allowed him to develop self-confidence and safety in his work.
During this process, he had a great revelation: certain traits of his own that he saw as flaws were actually strengths, he just hadn’t been looking at them the right way. Thanks to the project, Adriel learned a valuable lesson about confidence: recognizing that you are good at something doesn’t mean a lack of humility or a desire to look down on others: it means knowing how to recognize your own qualities and worth.
The opportunity that changed Taísla’s life
Taísla dreamed of the chance to enter the labor market as a young apprentice. It was during that search that she and her mother discovered Acelen Acender’s Jovens Conectados Program. She did not think twice: she embraced the opportunity and won a place in the course, which gave her the chance to acquire advanced computer skills and develop. For her, one of the most important aspects of the program is the support provided to students to help them cover the costs of transportation, meals, uniforms, and school supplies. Taísla believes that, without that, she wouldn’t have been able to stay in the program.
Another advantage she highlights is welcoming atmosphere provided both by the professionals involved in the project and by Acender’s facilities. For the future, Taísla wants to keep dedicating herself to studies and advancing her professional evolution. She would like to take other courses, such as an English course, which she believes will be very important to open new doors for her in the job market.
Elizângela’s ancestral strength and leadership
Elizângela’s story is, in her own words, a “war story” and of survival. Since the age of 12, her life has been forged working hard on farms and with the tides in mangroves to take oysters, fish crab and make flour and palm oil alongside her family members.
Today, having overcome these struggles, she serves as president of the Associação do Quilombo do Monte and is a member of the soccer school and the Community Advisory Board (CCC). It was through friends and a leadership course that she was invited to participate in a social dialogue, which opened doors for her to community leadership and connected her to Acelera Pesca.
The program had profound impacts on her life, as it generated knowledge and learning, which today she passes on to her children and to the entire community, and gave great visibility to her association.
Looking ahead, Elizângela hopes that the future generations will experience the same joy she did when participating in the Acelen Acender programs. She celebrates the unprecedented opportunity to make dreams and community projects a reality thanks to the broad reach of the initiative, which today supports associations and NGOs in such places as São Francisco do Conde, Candeias and Madre de Deus, and the islands of Salvador.
Diana’s fulfilled wish
Behind Diana’s story with the project, there is a touching family account: Luka, her son, wrote a letter for Solidarity Christmas, an initiative by Acelen in partnership with the Baptist Church that gives gifts to children in the communities.
In the letter, the son expressed expressed his hope that his mother, who was unemployed at the time, would find a new job. Luka’s letter was read and, in July, Diana was invited to participate in the selection process to work at the Acelen Acender facility and was subsequently selected.
The impact of this achievement was life-changing for the whole family: with her new job, Diana was able to renovate her home and build meaningful friendships that will last a lifetime. In addition, her daughters joined the project through the Jornada Jovem e Jovens Conectados programs, and one of them even worked as a community organizer on a research project for Dutovia.
Looking ahead, Diana remains focused on continuing to work and furthering her knowledge in the industrial sector. Her main goal for the future is to keep encouraging and helping her children with their studies so they can go to college.
Marcio’s entrepreneurial growth
Marcio found in Acelen Acender the lever he needed to boost his business. He got to know the initiative when he was invited to participate in Rede de Valor, Acelen Acender’s program that promotes the strengthening of companies in the region.
During the training sessions, he met other entrepreneurs and realized the project’s genuine commitment to creating real opportunities for local suppliers.
The impact on Marcio and his family was immediate, as it created new job opportunities. Connected to AVSI through Acender, his company, Essi Engenharia, started to provide various services, such as air conditioning and electrical maintenance and painting. This breakthrough gave Marcio the financial security he needed to invest in the growth of his business and ensure his family’s well-being.
Today, he envisions a prosperous future for himself, with collective gains. Marcio sees ESSI Engenharia growing, creating more jobs, and participating in crucial projects in the region, proving that local companies have full technical capacity to meet large demands when given the opportunity to demonstrate their value.
