From the communityto the world stage.
Global Exchange trains young people from public schools and underserved communities in cultural entrepreneurship, opens a door to the United States, and brings what they learn back home.
A program by Actyon Foundation
- 300young people trained
- 6 monthsof cultural entrepreneurship
- 1 monthcultural circuit in the United States
- 1,000books donated to libraries
About the program
More than a training program, Global Exchange is a bridge: from cultural entrepreneurship to international experience, and back to the communities that need it most.
It offers comprehensive training in the creative economy, sustainable management and digital culture, combined with an instrumental English course.
The program includes a cultural exchange in the United States and a social counterpart in Brazil. Together they build youth leadership and strengthen participants as agents of cultural transformation in their own neighborhoods, prepared to inspire others through culture.
From a street in Rio to a stage in New York.
Scroll to follow the journey.
01Where it startsThe communities of Rio, where talent is everywhere and opportunity is not. 02ImaginationCreativity that already exists, waiting for tools and a stage. 03Culture as workBrazilian culture treated as what it is: an economy, a career, a future. 04Six months of trainingCreative economy, cultural management, digital culture and English. 05The circuitMuseums, theaters and universities in the United States. 06The world stageAnd then home again, to share everything with the community.
What Global Exchange sets out to achieve.
One general objective and four concrete commitments, each designed to be measured at the end of the twelve months.
To promote the training of young people in cultural entrepreneurship, fostering innovation, internationalization and the democratization of access to culture.
- 300
Young people trained in the practices and theories of cultural entrepreneurship.
The creative economy stimulated as a real strategy for development.
New opportunities opened for international cultural exchange.
- 1,000
Books donated, with reading and intercultural dialogue encouraged through literary events.
Three phases. One journey.
Every participant follows the same route: learn at home, see the world, then give back. Each phase has its own ticket.
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Phase01Duration6 months
Cultural Entrepreneurship Training
Lectures, hands-on workshops and training sessions with specialists, organized around four pillars.
- Creative Economy and Cultural Innovation
- Sustainable Management of Cultural Projects
- Digital Culture and New Creative Markets
- Instrumental English Course
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Phase02Duration1 month
International Cultural Circuit
An exchange program in the United States, including visits to museums, theaters, universities and cultural innovation centers, with academic activities along the way.
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Phase03Duration1 month
Social Counterpart
A Universal Literature Soirée organized with youth participation, together with the donation of books to community and school libraries. It consolidates the project’s return to society.
Museums. Theaters. Universities. Rooms they were never invited into, until now.
Phase 02 · International Cultural Circuit · United States
What the program delivers, and what it gives back.
Main cultural product
- Cultural Entrepreneurship CourseSix months of lectures, hands-on workshops and training sessions.
- International Cultural CircuitOne month of cultural and academic immersion in the United States.
- Universal Literature SoiréeOne month of preparation and a public event, with book donations.
Social counterpart
- Literature soirée in public schoolsOrganized with and for the students of the public network.
- 1,000 books donatedTo school and community libraries.
- Free online broadcastingThe main course activities streamed openly, so anyone can learn.
Twelve months, month by month.
Select a stage to see what happens. Pre-production, a six-month course, the journey to the United States and a closing that gives back.
Planning and selection
Pedagogical planning, participant selection, team hiring and expert curation.
Who it is for, and how we keep the door open.
Target audience
Indirect audience: teachers, family members, attendees of the literature soirée and digital audiences following the online streaming.
Access democratization plan
- Priority selection of young people from public schools and vulnerable communities.
- Free admission for external audiences at in-person events.
- Digital streaming of lectures with nationwide access.
- Accessibility resources, including Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) and accessible materials.
Accessibility is built in, not added on.
Every space, every broadcast and every workshop is planned so that no young person is left out.
All activities hosted in venues that are 100% accessible to people with reduced mobility, including ramps, elevators and adapted restrooms.
Adapted chairs and accessible tables for wheelchair users.
Accessible transportation guaranteed, with adapted vehicles for participants with disabilities.
Visual and tactile signage in all spaces, with tactile flooring and Braille signs.
Staff trained to provide inclusive support for people with disabilities.
Online streaming with real-time Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) interpretation.
Portuguese subtitles in all live broadcasts and recorded content.
Support materials in accessible formats: Word, accessible PDF and audio description.
A summarized plain-language version for young people with reading difficulties.
Digital content compatible with screen reader software.
Accessible cultural mediation: workshops and lectures in clear language, with visual resources and practical examples.
Inclusive discussion circles with mediator support for young people with comprehension difficulties.
Workshops on developing inclusive cultural projects, encouraging leadership among young people with disabilities.
Audio description of performances at the Universal Literature Soirée, plus Braille and audiobook versions of the texts presented.
Guidance for participants on making their own cultural projects inclusive.
Local impact, stamped on a global agenda.
Global Exchange is designed to contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. That alignment strengthens its institutional legitimacy and its ability to connect with companies, funders and international impact agendas.
This alignment is not decorative. It is what lets sponsors fit Global Exchange into ESG policies, calls for proposals, international cooperation and long-term partnerships.
SDG 4: Quality education
Cultural entrepreneurship training and instrumental English for 300 young people.
SDG 8: Decent work and economic growth
The creative economy as a path to income, careers and new cultural ventures.
SDG 10: Reduced inequalities
Priority for public schools and vulnerable communities, with full accessibility.
SDG 11: Sustainable cities and communities
Culture and local heritage strengthened in the communities participants come from.
SDG 17: Partnerships for the goals
Brazil and the United States, public and private partners, working from one plan.
A U.S. 501(c)(3) structure behind every contribution.
Global Exchange is a program by Actyon Foundation, an organization with institutional presence in Brazil and the United States, where it holds official recognition as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
That status allows Actyon to raise funds with tax benefits and to run social impact projects under demanding standards of governance and transparency. The structure was designed to guarantee accountability, institutional integrity and international replicability.
- Contributions from U.S. donors may be tax-deductible as permitted by law.
- A recognized nonprofit counterpart that fits corporate ESG and social investment policies.
- Eligible for international funding and public-private cooperation.
Miami office
245 SE 1st Street, Office 311Miami, FL 33131 +1 (786) 816-6838 501(c)(3) nonprofit
Rio de Janeiro office
Av. Embaixador Abelardo Bueno, 1111, Office 1, Room 318Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro +55 (21) 98669-1150
Choose how far you take them.
Three sponsorship tiers, each tied to a share of the total program. Every tier puts your brand at the center of a story of culture, youth and international opportunity.
- Visibility with purposePresence across the course, the U.S. circuit, the soirée and online broadcasts.
- Impact reportingClear results at the end of the program: participants trained, books donated, audiences reached.
- ESG and SDG alignmentA cultural and educational project ready for your sustainability reporting.
- A trusted structureContributions channeled through Actyon Foundation’s 501(c)(3) in the United States.
Three hundred young people are ready to turn culture into a future. Talk to Actyon Foundation about sponsoring, hosting or supporting Global Exchange.
- Phone and WhatsApp
- BR +55 (21) 98669-1150US +1 (786) 816-6838