MEDIATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION AND TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE IN MARACANÃ IN SÃO LUÍS - MA

Abstract

This study analyzes information mediation in the articulation between traditional knowledge and environmental information in the Maracanã community, in São Luís, Maranhão, based on the perceptions of mediators involved in a selective waste collection workshop held at Terreiro de São Jorge Tumajamacê. Environmental information is understood as circulating not only through technical documents, but also through practices, memories, oral traditions, religious expressions, and territorial experiences. Methodologically, this is a basic, qualitative, descriptive, and exploratory study. The corpus comprised participant observation, field records, promotional materials, and a questionnaire administered to six mediators linked to the project Mata Sagrada: cuidar de quem nos cuida. The data were analyzed using simple frequencies and content analysis. The results indicate a situated, multimodal, and culturally referenced mediation process, articulating materials on recycling, terreiro-based knowledge, oral tradition, audiovisual resources, collective practices, and values rooted in African-derived traditions. The terreiro emerged as an informational environment, integrating nature, ancestry, identity, and territorial belonging. The study concludes that environmental mediation strengthens social protagonism, although it depends on continuity, community participation, public policies, and institutional partnerships.