The community program visits the city of Labrea, presenting a week-long event filled with sports and arts activities

Sao Paulo, September 3, 2015 – Caravana do Esporte (Sports Caravan) and Caravana as Artes (Arts Caravan) continue to expand in Brazil with a week-long program that took place August 25-29 in Labrea, a municipality 435 miles from Manaus (AM), in the State of Amazonas.

The program, created by ESPN in collaboration with UNICEF Brazil, and the Institute for Sports and Education, helps communities to engage children with sports, public involvement, comprehensive education, community-building, respect for diversity, and enhancement of local culture. Since the program’s inception 10 years ago, Sports Caravan has impacted 2.5 million children in 23 states and 104 municipalities.

The Sports Caravan in Labrea was filled with sports and arts activities for children led by the participation of a variety of Brazilian sports and music celebrities.

ESPN Brasil will televise a recap of the event on September 20 at 7:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+, and September 21 at 2:30 p.m.

“ESPN is very proud of Sports Caravan. It has been an honor for us to be part of this project from the very beginning and to contribute to its impressive performance that, since 2004, has provided evidence of the power of sports and arts in the lives of countless people in remote areas,” said German Hartenstein, general manager of ESPN Brasil, who took part on the Labrea event. “The journalistic content of the Caravans is also unique in the Brazilian television industry, and I am sure that sports fans will be rewarded with yet another great program.”

Disney’s involvement began in 2014, and its characters, Mickey and Goofy, were in Labrea this year to participate in scheduled activities. Additionally, children can watch Disney’s famous movies together with their families. Andrei Lamberg, from Disney Planet, and Vini Campos, from Disney Junior, were two of the hosts of this Caravana.

“We are very excited to participate in the Sports Caravan, a program that travels throughout different parts of the country teaching important values to children, families, and teachers, through sports,” said Miguel Vives, Senior Vice-President of The Walt Disney Company (Brazil), who was also part of this Caravan. “Disney’s involvement is aligned with our corporate citizenship platform “Inspire-se”, which works by strengthening communities, inspiring creativity, and promoting healthy living and conservation of the environment.”

Labrea is characterized by its indigenous population, making this Caravan particularly special as it involves indigenous children.

“We must guarantee every child’s right to play sports and to learn. We need to keep a vigilant eye on indigenous boys and girls, who have been consistently excluded from major wins in terms of rights in this country. We want the Caravan to serve as inspiration for municipalities so that all children can learn, have fun, play a sport, and live their culture,” said Unai Sacona, UNICEF’s coordinator for the Amazon Region who represented the organization in Labrea, alongside Rodrigo Fonseca, UNICEF’s Sports for Development specialist in Brazil. “By bringing the Caravan to an indigenous community, we are not only promoting their rights, but also shedding light on the enormous inequalities that these people experience. Cultural diversity in the Amazon Region is our greatest wealth, and it must be viewed as an asset, not as an issue. Sports help us come together and move forward with this valuable and rich diversity.”

In 2015, the Sports and Arts Caravans have already toured across five other Brazilian cities including Nazare da Mata (PE), Porto da Folha (SE), Uniao dos Palmares (AL), Pedra Azul (MG) and Rio das Flores (RJ).

About the Caravana do Esporte

Going strong for 10 years and working in rural municipalities in Brazil – selected together with UNICEF— that have low to medium scores on the Human Development Index, Caravana do Esporte boasts impressive figures. Its outreach includes 2.5 million children, both directly and indirectly, in 23 states and 104 municipalities, with 30,000 trained professionals and 120 volunteer athletes and celebrities. Activities featured during each stage follow the principles of public involvement, comprehensive education, community-building, respect for diversity, and enhancement of local culture. Over its 11 years, the project’s most important achievements include decrease in school absence, greater involvement of parents in school activities, more children participating in their classrooms, reduced rates of violence and child labor, greater motivation of professionals working in public education, and the development of public policy to enforce children’s rights.

About The Walt Disney Company Latin America

The Walt Disney Company Latin America is responsible for the Disney brand and all its business across Latin America. It has offices in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, México, U.S. (Miami) and Venezuela. For more information please visit our web sites www.disneylatino.com  y www.disney.com.br

About Corporate Citizenship

Being a good corporate citizen is a long tradition for Disney. Inspírate is the identity of the Company’s corporate citizenship efforts, through which all audiences are invited to live healthfully, protect the environment, strengthen their communities and encourage creativity, in order to build a better future. Through donations, partnerships with local organizers, entertainment experiences, public welfare campaigns and corporate volunteering, Disney contributes to improving the lives of children, families and communities. More information:  www.compromisodisney.com; https://www.facebook.com/CompromisoDisney. Follow the conversation with the hashtag #CompromisoDisney.