Brazilian Activists and BOKU Students Bring Arpilleras to the Votivkirche

From February 20 to April 26, the impressive arpilleras created by Brazilian activists will take center stage in a special exhibition at the Votivkirche in Vienna – and students from the master’s program in Climate Change and Societal Transformation at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU) are playing an active role in it.

Textile artworks tell stories of flooded villages, destroyed livelihoods – and of women who are resisting. These stories are now made visible in Vienna’s Votivkirche: in the traveling exhibition “Alerta Amazônia! – when fabric speaks,” which was on display at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU) from October to November 2025, Brazilian activists are presenting their arpilleras in the Votivkirche until April 26, making climate justice tangible. Admission is free.

The works were created by activists from the Brazilian organization Movimento dos Atingidos por Barragens (MAB / Movement of People Affected by Dams). Their detailed textile images address flooding, displacement, and environmental destruction – but also solidarity and resilience within the affected communities.

In dialogue with these are works by students of the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna. The arpilleras titled “Land of Mountains. Land of Femicide” and “Healthy and just food system for all!” were created during a joint workshop in December 2025. In this way, the exhibition connects perspectives from Brazil with local issues and creates a unique space for encounter between science, art, and activism in the Votivkirche.

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The exhibition is presented by horizont3000 and Movimento dos Atingidos por Barragens. It takes place within the framework of the project “Climate Justice for the Amazon People,” which is being implemented from April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2026 by horizont3000 together with Movimento dos Atingidos por Barragens. The project aims to strengthen the capacity of communities affected by dams in the Brazilian Amazon to adapt to climate change and to prevent the destruction of ecosystems and traditional livelihoods.

The project is supported and funded by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Climate and Environmental Protection, Regions and Water Management; Dreikönigsaktion der Katholischen Jungschar; and Sei So Frei Salzburg.

03.03.2026