Eduardo Lyra, known as Edu Lyra, is a social entrepreneur, founder and CEO of Instituto Gerando Falcões, a non-governmental organization (NGO) with sports and cultural projects for children and adolescents and professional qualification for young people and adults living in favelas. Lyra grew up in a favela in Guarulhos, in the metropolitan region of São Paulo. She founded the NGO 10 years ago with the money she earned selling her book “Jovens Falcões” in the favela. Lyra was selected by the World Economic Forum as one of the young Brazilians who can change the world. Recently, Gerando Falcões inaugurated the first space of the Favela dos Sonhos project, located in Ferraz de Vasconcelos, in Greater São Paulo. The site, which used 7 million reais (US$1.5 million) from donations and private partnerships, is an environment designed to house social programs and income-generating services.
