By Melissa Reneth Ramirez | Development & Grantwriting Coordinator
The past few months since February have been full of work, new collaborations, and projects as part of our Participatory Design Laboratory.
In March, we launched our yearly open call for community projects, receiving 14 applications from all around the island related to agriculture, fishing, education, restoring abandoned places, community development, among others. Our team visited each project as part of the Phase 1 of our evaluation process and afterwards we collectively shared our thoughts and deliberated using our participatory methodology. We are happy to share that we’ll announce the selected projects soon. Through the Lab, we’ve also been able to create strong partnerships that have opened the door to new opportunities. Later on this year, we will begin a creative placemaking project with two organizations that applied to our Lab in the past. We’re excited to share news and pictures once we begin.
In Caguas we carried out construction brigades and we were able to finish a ramp to increase accessibility to the community plaza and also a planting and gardening area. In Loiza, we are planning to carry out short workshops in PAYE’s and AMADTEPACAM’s summer camp for kids to learn more about the community construction processes. In Aguadilla, we accompanied the fishermen during their annual easter fish sale and also in meetings with local agencies with the goal of securing their permanence in Crash Boat and the possibility of a new Fishing Village. We’re also working hand in hand with them in the permitting process that can sometimes be a hassle and take longer than expected, so that they can operate from the temporary trailer shop.
The next months promise to be full of work and new activities with current and new projects of our Participatory Design Lab. Make sure to follow us on Instagram and Facebook to stay updated and see how communities reach their goals and make their desires a reality.
We aim to fund more projects for the next years to come and your support directly aids in making them a reality and in maintaining our Laboratory’s daily operations to keep empowering community development in Puerto Rico. Thanks for believing in our island’s growth.
Until next time!
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