Published on March 8, International Women’s Day, Bernarda’s story embodies the heart of this global moment. Under this year’s theme, “Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls,” the international community calls for concrete steps to dismantle the barriers that prevent women and girls from living in dignity such as discriminatory laws, weak legal protections, harmful practices, and social norms that erode fundamental rights. Bernarda’s journey is a living testament to what becomes possible when education opens the door to awareness, courage, and transformation.
We are honored to accompany and support women like Bernarda who, through the many programs of Fe y Alegría, are building a brighter future for women and girls in rural communities and inner-city neighborhoods. Their leadership, resilience, and commitment to justice remind us that lasting change begins with education and grows through action.
My name is Bernarda Riveros. For eighteen years I have worked as an educator in the Rural Bilingual Intercultural Education by Radio Program (PREBIR) of Fe y Alegría Paraguay. I first began as a pytyvõhára (volunteer assistant) in 2007, and when I realized that I could help other women transform their lives through education, just as mine had been transformed, I decided to embrace this vocation.
My Beginnings as a Student in PREBIR
It was the year 2000 when I enrolled in PREBIR to complete my basic education. At that time, I was thirty years old, living with my partner, and working as a homemaker.
My personal life took a one hundred eighty–degree turn as I read the materials during the aty (weekly gatherings) and learned about human rights. As I progressed, as an individual, as a woman, and as a mother, my life changed in a profound way. PREBIR planted the seed I needed in order to grow.
For a Life Free from Violence
I had not realized, until I began PREBIR, that I was a victim of domestic violence. My children were also carrying that violence along with me, a violence that many women do not recognize. But thanks be to God, I was able to recognize it in time and defend myself. Through the PREBIR materials, I learned which path to take, where to seek help, and how not to continue enduring the domestic violence my children and I were experiencing.
Between 2008 and 2009, I went through the legal proceedings against my former partner. It was there that I fully understood the consequences of the abuse, as my children shared how deeply they had suffered. So much so that they had contemplated suicide. It is neither an achievement nor a victory to see the person you once loved, the father of your children, in prison. But as women, we must act and refuse to continue being victims of violence.
The Vocation of Educating Adults in Rural Communities
Today I am a different person, a different Bernarda. Through PREBIR, I was able to transform my life. I have stable work, and I have my children. I am still with Fe y Alegría Paraguay, now as an educator in vulnerable rural areas, helping other women and men pursue their education and learn about their rights.
On Tuesdays, I travel more than 130 kilometers from Remansito to reach the Indigenous community of Kemha Yatsepo, located at kilometer 160 along the Transchaco Route. It is a journey of approximately three hours by public transportation to the highway, followed by another eleven kilometers along a rural road to reach the community. Thanks to this Fe y Alegría program, older adults, many over fifty years of age, are learning, for the first time, to write their names.
On Wednesdays, it takes me an hour to reach another Indigenous community called Toba Qom. There, participants are completing their modules, and in 2024 they were able to read their materials aloud before an audience.
In my own community of Remansito, I teach on Thursdays, guiding a group of adults as they complete their basic education. In addition, I accompany women who lead a small business producing handmade soaps and candles.
An Act of Gratitude
During one weekly aty, a fellow participant told me, “Teacher, I will tell you the truth: I am having problems at home with my husband.” In that moment, my own problem seemed so small. So many women in my community were going through the same thing. And I said to myself, “I must face this as well.”
Out of gratitude to Fe y Alegría, I will always continue to support my community and give my very best. Education is a necessary and urgent tool because when you immerse yourself in it, a light of hope opens before you, allowing you to see things differently.
