In Brazil’s capital city, a new initiative is transforming how tourism can serve those most often left out of its benefits.

Trans Histórias is a project co-created by social enterprise Sama Sama International and Casa Rosa, a shelter for LGBTQIAPN+ people in vulnerable situations in Brasília. Its aim is simple but powerful: to use tourism as a tool to create dignified jobs, amplify marginalised voices, and foster real social inclusion.

Five trans women — Bebel Mendonça, Layla Rosas, Nathalia Vasconcelos, Amanda Costa, and Lorraine Macedo — aged between 20 and 62, have been selected to train as community tour guides and storytellers. Through the programme, they are learning how to lead guided walking tours of Brasília’s cultural and historical landmarks, combining official history with their own lived experiences and perspectives. This means that visitors won’t just see the city’s modernist architecture and famous sites — they will also hear personal stories from women whose voices are rarely given a public platform.

Brazil has the highest reported number of murders of trans people in the world, and many trans women face systemic exclusion from education, formal employment, and public life. In this context, Trans Histórias offers an alternative pathway that creates paid, skilled work in the tourism sector, reclaims public space, challenges stereotypes, and builds confidence, pride, and community visibility. Each participant receives training in guiding, history, and storytelling, as well as a grant to help them continue the work. Sessions take place on weekends and include visits to iconic sites such as the Itamaraty Palace — for many, their first time visiting such landmarks — and collective lunches to strengthen bonds within the group.

“Even though I was born in Brasília, I realised I didn’t know much about certain places. This is a great opportunity to get a decent job, with professional growth and, most importantly, personal development,” says Bebel Mendonça, one of the participants.

The project also brings in representatives from Embratur (Brazil’s national tourism board), the Ministry of Tourism, and leaders of the LGBTQIAPN+ movement to participate in panel discussions on inclusive tourism and sustainable practices. For Pedro Matias, coordinator of Casa Rosa, “It is a great joy to see these women, so often marginalised by society, being dignified and trained for work. We want to demystify the image that people have of them, humanise them, and reaffirm their place in the world.”

Although still in its first year, Trans Histórias has already been recognised internationally, winning Silver in the Latin American Travel Association’s 2024 Responsible Tourism Awards for Making Travel Inclusive, and receiving The Conscious Travel Foundation’s Community Impact Fund 2024.

To bring these tours to life for both local and international visitors, the project is crowdfunding to raise £13,000. The funds will directly support story-gathering workshops, professional guide training, filming for a wider awareness campaign, and co-designing the tour experience with the participants. As Jayni Gudka, founder of Sama Sama International, explains: “This project is proof that tourism can be a force for dignity, inclusion, and joy. It’s about spotlighting the brilliance of a community too often excluded — and inviting the world to listen, learn, and walk alongside them.”

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