Humanitas360 Institute to support incarcerated people during 2025 temporary leaves in São Paulo
Throughout 2025, the Humanitas360 Institute will be present during the temporary leave periods of incarcerated individuals in several prisons across the state of São Paulo as part of the project “Green Doors: Temporary Leave”. During this support initiative, clothing, food, and personal hygiene kits will be distributed, alongside conversations with individuals in semi-open regimes and their families about their rights and legal proceedings—helping them better understand their situation and make informed decisions.
A pilot initiative took place in 2024 at Tremembé Women’s Penitentiary II, in the countryside of São Paulo, where approximately 120 people benefited, including incarcerated individuals on temporary leave and their families. After another field action during the Christmas leave of the same year, the initiative expanded and is now structured as a full-scale project, with ongoing developments throughout 2025.
According to Laura Martini Zellmeister, project manager at the Humanitas360 Institute, “the focus of the initiative is to make this moment more humane for people deprived of liberty, as well as their families, supporting them based on their real challenges and needs. This type of action is also carried out by other social organizations, especially in the capital. Our goal is to expand this kind of initiative in the countryside.”
There are four temporary leave periods (or “saidinhas”, as they are known in Brazil) scheduled for 2025, the first of which will take place on March 11, when the team will be at Tremembé Women’s Penitentiary II. The next will occur in the months of June and September, in addition to the year-end leave, held between December and January. Provided for in the Penal Execution Law, temporary leaves are an important tool for social reintegration, allowing individuals in semi-open regimes—who already leave prison to study and work—to strengthen social ties and prepare for their return to society.
In addition to mobilizing the institute’s legal, project, and communication teams, the “Green Doors: Temporary Leave” project will also count on support from Humanitas360’s partners to make the actions even more effective, including Tereza, a social enterprise that is part of the same social impact ecosystem headquartered at CIVI-CO. The participation of volunteers from Instituto Pro Bono, Comunidade Carcerária (2C), Instituto Recomeçar, and Mosaico Pinheiros will also be fundamental.
Since its founding in 2015, Humanitas360 has committed itself to reducing violence and promoting citizenship among vulnerable populations, especially within the prison system. Through the Entrepreneurship Behind and Beyond Bars program, the institute has already incubated social cooperatives of incarcerated individuals in prisons in São Paulo and Maranhão, impacting hundreds of people and their families. This work led to the creation of Tereza, now an independent company that trains and generates income for women formerly incarcerated.
The “Green Doors: Temporary Leave” project opens a new chapter in this paradigm-shifting journey. It aims to build a more humane and inclusive ecosystem, offering dignity and a new perspective to women serving sentences in prisons across São Paulo’s countryside. This project not only addresses the immediate needs of these women but also plants the seeds for a more just and empowered future.