An international event took place on July 4th and 5th at the Théâtre de la Concorde, bringing together representatives from Brazil and France to discuss the power of favelas.
The favela took center stage in Paris on July 4th and 5th, at the Théâtre de la Concorde, which hosted the second edition of Expo Favela Innovation Paris 2025. This international fair promotes innovation and entrepreneurship born in popular territories. Organized by CUFA France in partnership with Favela Holding, the event gathered over 40 exhibitors, government representatives, investors, artists, and social entrepreneurs.
Following the success of its first French edition, Expo Favela Paris returned with an even more robust program, connecting periphery projects with business opportunities, visibility, and institutional support. The 2025 edition focused on valuing the entrepreneurial potential of popular neighborhoods in Paris and Île-de-France — regions that, much like Brazilian favelas, face social challenges but also concentrate innovative solutions.The Brazilian delegation included over 30 representatives from states such as Amazonas, Amapá, Bahia, Pernambuco, Paraíba, Rio de Janeiro, Paraná, and Rio Grande do Sul, strengthening cultural and economic exchange between the peripheries of both countries.
Among the program’s highlights was the participation of Governor Eduardo Leite (RS) in a panel on public policies for vulnerable communities, alongside French deputy Éléonore Caroit and Eric Fajole, director for Latin America at Business France. The event also saw the presence of authorities like Thani Mohamed Soilihi, French Minister for International Partnerships, and former Brazilian Foreign Minister Aloísio Nunes, representing ApexBrasil.Beyond business rounds and panels on social impact, the Expo in Paris also embraced culture as a tool for transformation. Under the artistic direction of Daniel Nicolaevsky Maria, the event featured concerts, performances, exhibitions, and literary presentations by talented individuals from the urban scenes of Brazil and France.
“Bringing Expo Favela to Paris is a way of reaffirming to the world that the favela is a space of creation, power, and concrete solutions. It’s the periphery at the center of global innovation,” highlighted Celso Athayde, founder of CUFA and creator of the project.
Expo Favela Innovation Paris was supported by institutions like Schneider Electric Foundation, Edenred, VINCI, and APEXBrasil, as well as the Brazilian Ministry of Culture. Prestigious French universities, such as HEC and EDHEC, also participated in the event.
More than just a fair, Expo Favela Innovation in Paris has solidified itself as a movement: an international stage where the invisible became protagonists.
