Corporacion Educatica y Cultural Motete

Motete is a non-profit cultural organization based in Quibdó, Chocó, and in the Urabá region (Colombia), that promotes the development of critical, autonomous, and creative thinking for the exercise of active citizenship. Founded in 2016, Motete was born as a commitment to social transformation through words, art, and culture, focusing especially on the Afro-Colombian and Indigenous population of the department of Chocó and the Urabá region, territories historically affected by structural racism, state neglect, and armed conflicts.

Our mission is to generate meaningful encounters around reading, writing, the arts, and cultures to strengthen the social fabric, celebrate cultural identities, and contribute to peacebuilding. We work with children, youth, older adults, teachers, creators, and families, with the conviction that culture is a right and a tool for recognition, expression, and transformation.

History and Principles

Since its creation, Motete has cultivated a way of working based on active listening, collaborative work, connection with the territories, and deep respect for the ways of knowing and feeling of the communities. We are inspired by the image of the “motete,” a basket that symbolizes the diversity and richness of collective knowledge that is interwoven in our programs.

We believe that mistakes are part of learning, that we all teach and we all learn, and that it is possible to build alternatives from love, autonomy, creativity, and recognition of others.

Lines of Work

Our work is structured around two lines of action:

• Selva de Letras, focused on promoting reading, writing, and critical thinking as tools for the formation of free, critical, and expressive individuals.

• Tejido Cultural, aimed at strengthening cultural offerings, access to the arts, and the development of critical audiences committed to their territory.

Both lines are developed through five strategic programs.

Main Programs

• Selva de Letras in the Neighborhoods: Aimed at children and older adults, which, through literary gatherings, strengthens self-esteem, critical thinking, and communication skills. It includes thematic cycles, family workshops, and reading clubs.

• Selva de Letras in the School: Support for educational institutions in processes of critical reading, reading promotion, literacy, and teacher training, with emphasis on an ethnic-differential approach.

• Other Readings: Projects that connect art, citizenship, and territorial development with reading and writing processes. Includes initiatives such as the National School of Poetry for children, and the Chocó Writing School for emerging writers.

• FLECHO – Fiesta de la Lectura y la Escritura del Chocó: An annual festival that celebrates the word, cultural diversity, and community encounters. It takes place in four municipalities (Turbo, Bahía Solano, Istmina, and Quibdó) and includes workshops, conversations, bookstores, activities with families and teachers, community gatherings, and artistic and musical performances.

• Casa Motete: Cultural centers in Quibdó and Urabá that offer permanent programming such as Story Hour, the Chess School, community cinema, knowledge-sharing gatherings, musical nights, literary talks, and book lending.

Impact

• More than 45,000 people have participated in FLECHO activities up to its eighth edition.

• 160 children have graduated from the full cycle of Selva de Letras in the Neighborhoods; in 2025 there will be 420, for a total of 580 children.

• Between 2021 and 2024, 1,400 students participated in Selva de Letras in the School in two municipalities (Quibdó and Bahía Solano); in 2025 there will be 420 in municipalities of the Urabá region.

• More than 820 children and adolescents in 2023 and 2024, and 420 in 2025, took part in the complementary school day program together with Comfenalco Antioquia in Urabá.

• We have worked with partners such as Fundación SURA, Tinker Foundation, CAF Bank, Banco de la República, COMFENALCO, the Government of Chocó, the Ministry of Culture of Colombia, Fundación Fraternidad Medellín, and municipal mayors’ offices.

Future Activities

For 2025, our main goals are to:

• Improve the working conditions of the team through fair and stable salaries.

• Ensure the continuity of strategic programs in reading, writing, and culture.

• Optimize financial and administrative management to guarantee fast, efficient, and quality processes.

• Consolidate long-term alliances that guarantee our autonomy and the expansion of territorial impact.

• Strengthen our social enterprise and income-generating initiatives, such as the bookstore and cultural services.