¡Buenas tardes! It’s our last day in the community of Apopa, El Salvador. They have already done a lot to create a community space where youth could go to get away from the gang violence that many of these communities struggle with, as well as use the space to be creative and innovative and find their place in the world. As our last day, we wanted to do something special with them. We had done some ideations related to what they wanted and needed for the space, but we also asked them what they might want to do together as a group. The students agonized over different things we could spend an afternoon doing, and finally settled on having a Mexican taco party with soda. So, we picked up all the ingredients and everyone squeezed in around a table to eat together. When people weren’t busy munching on tacos, they were busy discussing the difference between Mexican pico de gallo and Salvadoran chimol and teasing each other as siblings might. It was sad to leave them after such … [Read more...] about A Taco Celebration!

Hello, hello! It’s our second to last day in Apopa, and today, we’re working on how to make this new youth innovation lab feel a little bit more like home. We’ve got lots of additional supplies, but the space still isn’t as personal as we might like. To give the youth a bit more ownership over their space and help them remember all the work they did to make it happen, we decided to do a little photo project together. The youth using the space would be able to learn how to use the camera and then take pictures of themselves and their peers and hang them up in the space. To no one’s surprise, they were all enthusiastic about the project and took dozens of pictures of the space and people, and then subsequently hug them up on a rack, wrapped with the same string used to hang clothes in the neighborhood. “We intentionally wanted to use a material that the students would recognize from their community,” Leo, one of the human-centered designers told us. “Not only would this help … [Read more...] about Smile for the Camera

Welcome back to another day in the sunny country of El Salvador. Much like the last few days, we’ve been busy working on the youth innovation lab in Apopa, where youth in the neighborhood can come to use supplies, explore their interests, and create community. We’ve already picked up some supplies for the youth to use, and, even though we think sculpting clay and laminators are exciting and useful, the space was also lacking some basic supplies. Today, that means picking up some office supplies for the space—pens, post-it notes, tape, staplers, whiteboard markers—everything that they would need to round out the art materials, tools and other supplies. Before we even finished, the items were already being used. Sharpies and post-it notes were pulled out to take note of some future ideas, while the younger students were busy drawing and erasing, drawing and erasing on the whiteboards with the new equally colorful markers and erasers. If you’d like to support doing the … [Read more...] about A Clay Partay!

¡Buenos días! Greetings from the Changemakers 365 team in El Salvador, where we’re busy working with the community in Apopa to create safe spaces by way of a youth innovation lab. The space already offers a lot of opportunities to the youth of the neighborhood—people play soccer out back, there’s a small choreographed dance class for women, and other men who break dance. But they’re still missing some basic supplies they need to complete the lab. To help remedy some of this, we got them office supplies—post it notes, staplers, pens, pencils, tape, paper clips, you name it! If you’d like to support doing the doable and making change each and every day, make a donation to fund Changemakers 365.   Meet Sam! Sam developed an interest in forced displacement, food insecurity, and identity while working on her master's degree. She’s now using this knowledge to support Changemakers 365 across our country programs. When she’s not off on a work trip, she’s … [Read more...] about Office Supplies for Girls and Guys

It’s our third day in Apopa, and we’re continuing our work at the youth innovation lab here, a space that acts as a sanctuary for creativity and innovation, as well as a safe space away from the gang violence that troubles the neighborhood’s residents. But to be a truly creative and innovative place, the lab needed some more tools that the youth could use to explore their own interests. Computers would be able to help with some of that but they wouldn’t give the youth the same pleasure as creating something with their own hands. To start the process of filling in the space, we bought some art supplies that they’d be able to use—acrylic paints, watercolors, brushes, origami, and scrapbooking paper, colored pencils, glitter, and more. The modeling clay was an instant hit, and both the younger and older children enjoyed stretching and feeling the modeling clay in their fingers. If you’d like to support doing the doable and making change each and every day, make a donation to … [Read more...] about Turning Places Into Creative Spaces

Welcome back to Apopa! It’s our second day in El Salvador working in the youth innovation labs, and today, we’re all about keeping cool. A key component of our work is to be human-centered. Making that principle a reality means talking to people to understand how they express their own needs and desires. With this in mind, we decided to sit down and talk with youth and the Sisters in Apopa to see what ideas they already had for making their space amazing. Part of building a human-centered space is making sure to design for comfort! Many people in the Apopa community were concerned about the heat of the room. The youth lab is on the second floor of their community center where it’s often hot and humid. “It’s going to get even hotter when there are computers and groups of people using the space,” one community member shared. We decided to get a few fans for the space. The first fan is mounted on the wall to help air circulation, and the other is a floor fan that can be … [Read more...] about Cool, Calm, Collected

Hello, hello from El Salvador! Our team will be here for the next few weeks working with youth, Catholic Sisters, and several community centers to make our youth innovation labs a reality. As a part of the Color Movement, the labs exist to be spaces for creativity and innovation, where youth can come not only to explore and discover, but also to simply be. These are safe places in neighborhoods struggling with gang violence. They’re versatile spots, too, with a little something for everyone. Our team, the communities, and the Human Centered Design team at LERO studio have been working on building these spaces for weeks now, and we wanted to come in and help them with some of the final touches to get these spaces ready for use. We kicked things off in a community called Apopa! First, we started by installing some lights. Even though there were plenty of light sockets in the lab, there were only a few that worked. They were even relying on a partially broken light that … [Read more...] about Brighter Futures

The Apopa Youth Center is a sanctuary space. In the heart of gang territory, in a place where movement is restricted and violence is common, their center radiates peace, joy, and generosity. We sat down with the kids at the Youth Center to come up with ideas for how to make that sanctuary space even bigger - how to expand it out, reaching those who might not always find themselves within its walls. One boy had an idea. "There are people in this community who don't have food," he said. "We can bring them comfort and show them the good that's happening here by buying them some groceries." We loved that idea...what a wonderful way to give back, to put into action the leadership and generosity they've learned at the center. The kids put together care packages of food, with rice, sugar, flour, soup...the basics needed to create a meal. Then, they set out into their community to hand deliver the packages. And the best part? Even though we've spent the past few days on … [Read more...] about Generosity in Action

The kids at the Apopa Youth Center are bursting with talent. They're artistic and musical. They're into hip hop and tae kwon do. Their creativity is off the charts. These kids are looking for something - anything - to help spur on their creativity. They can barely contain their enthusiasm for art and learning! What they don't have a lot of is supplies. We went to the closest art supply store and pulled together a sampling of materials for them to test out - acrylic paint, colored pencils, charcoal, pastels, brushes, pallets, papers, and a block printing kit with plenty of ink for both fabric and paper. As we unveiled all the supplies, the looks on the kids faces was one of shock and surprise - they couldn't believe it was all for them! They got to work right away, sorting through the pile and chatting excitedly about different ideas for projects. We can't wait to see what they'll dream up and create next. … [Read more...] about Artists in Training

The Apopa Youth Center is run by a group of spunky and hardworking Catholic Sisters. It's a place where everyone is welcome. A place where you can unwind, be yourself - and also, get fit. Every day in the afternoons, the Sisters host an aerobics class for moms. They don't have many outlets to concentrate on their health - to spend an hour just for themselves. And that's what the Sisters provide. When we asked the kids at the center how they'd do even more to keep their moms coming, they had an idea...more workout gear! Right now, the ladies workout on the hard, tiled floor, with just a stick or a broom to use for gear. "They could really use things like weights, jump rope, yoga mats, and bands," said the kids. And, the kids had another idea...what if we surprised the moms with their new equipment just before class? So they organized some chairs, sat their moms down, and one by one they brought up the equipment, explaining what each was for. They were so proud and … [Read more...] about Everyday We’re Hustlin