Ecological urban furniture in public space based on 3R (Reduce-Reuse -Recycle) made by the community
MOMO is a winding bench using ecobricks and bioconstruction technique that empowers youth and community members to clean up the environment, repurpose their trash into a building material, learn natural building techniques, and then create a communal gathering area.The Ecobench effectively seals trash from entering the world’s biosphere while serving a clear artistic, educational and social function.
We strive to include men and women, young and old, rich and poor… and everyone in between.
Local
Spain
Catalonia, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona
It addresses urban-rural linkages
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
No
No
Yes
2022-11-08
As a representative of an organisation
Name of the organisation(s): Asociación Cultural la Gloria Factoría de arte Type of organisation: Non-profit organisation First name of representative: Nevenka Last name of representative: Pavic Gender: Female Nationality: Chile If relevant, please select your other nationality: Croatia Function: President Asociacion Cultural La Gloria Factoría de Arte Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Gloria 7, 4to, 3ra Town: Barcelona Postal code: 08902 Country: Spain Direct Tel:+34 679 72 45 27 E-mail:lagloriafactoria@gmail.com Website:https://www.lagloriafactoria.com/
MOMO is a social and participatory artistic project, carried out in the neighborhood of Les Planes in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, the territory with the highest population density per km2 in Europe and with the lowest income per capita in the metropolitan area of Barcelona.
This project aims to achieve greater social cohesion and a sense of belonging among its population, to promote collective learning, to improve the quality of life of the community through strengthening the social fabric and personal development, while improving our habitat and raising awareness about our impact on the environment, and what we can do to reverse it. Understanding art as a transformative social tool, we work from the environment in a creative and sustainable way through a symbiosis between the environment and the community where the project is carried out
Within this context our project proposes a series of theoretical and practical activities where we carry out these concepts through the technique of bio-construction.Through the methodology "learning by doing" we taught the concept of the 3R and also how to convert a plastic bottle into an eco-brick.
With 70 eco-bricks,carrying 450g of plastic inside, we built the ecobench in the park of Matacavalls, using a mixture of mud,straw and sand, where we reuse the earth of the park, and finally lined it with mosaic.
By adapting ancient construction methods to our modern challenges, we can put our eco-bricks to good use and be green. With earth and eco-brick methods we can not only build beautiful, strong and resistant structures, we can secure our plastic out of industry and out of the biosphere.
This experience was highly enriching in several aspects, as we created environmental awareness while promoting activities where sustainability, inclusion, aesthetics and quality of experience are present.The community becomes an active agent of this transformation that happens at the environmental, local, human, artistic and personal level
Sustainability
Inclusion
Education
Art
Transformation
One of the most effective tools for a more sustainable world is education. By educating we can change our consumption habits, making them more responsible and sustainable and thus reducing our negative impact on the planet while growing as human beings.
That is why MOMO promotes an active learning process, which aims to help develop skills for action; that is, capabilities to imagine, research, plan and act. We want to strengthen social participation by a more active, committed and aware society about its power to change its environment.
We worked with Fundación Contorno Urbano to carry out this project in the Ecological Cultural Center MODUL.This is located in the Park of Matacavalls, an old site in disuse next to the train tracks and that has now been transformed into a more resilient space that responds to challenges and needs of the territory
We collaborate with different entities, non-profit associations and very diverse collectives: mental health, socio-educational, public schools, institutes and neighbors.
The main thing was to explain the concept of the 3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) and how we can reduce our impact on the environment, emphasizing reducing our consumption and trying to reuse as much as possible. On the other hand, we value a millenary and sustainable construction technique, such as adobe construction, while incorporating eco-bricks teaching a sustainable way of building.
Participants were aware of how much plastic we can generate daily and that a large volume of that plastic (450g) can fill an eco-brick with which we can then build, with the same land that surrounds us, a beautiful furniture to enjoy and meet.
The experience has been of great impact, because through a playful way, which has several stages, the community has been aware that with very little we can achieve great things, and more if we work together
"Education does not change the world: it changes people who are going to change the world" Pablo Freire
One of the keys to the success of our project is that it is based on a participatory work experience, focused in a playful way in which we “learn by doing” and where teamwork is essential to achieve our goal. Also, the fact that we can build something useful for our daily life with materials that we discard on a daily basis, that pollute the environment and that is also aesthetically beautiful, has been of great impact.
The mosaic is a millenary technique popular in Catalonia thanks to the legacy of modernism and the work of Gaudí. On the other hand, it is an ideal technique to coat and protect our constructions.
But above all, what we value most about this art is that, metaphorically, it reflects that diversity that shapes our identity as a community or humanity.It is represented in all the broken pieces that, harmoniously united, can be transformed into a beautiful work that transcends, which we have achieved thanks to community work
At the cultural level, it has been of great importance to value this art that, despite being a popular art with great tradition in the territory, for the new generations is an art to discover.
In terms of experience, working a new technique together and in which each one has made his contribution has been of great learning. If we add to this the beautiful result that we have been able to achieve thanks to that way of collaborating and working, the satisfaction is enormous.
This project has not only helped to strengthen the social participation of the territory but has also made society more active, committed and aware of its power to change in its environment. Thanks to this we strengthen the social fabric and the sense of belonging.It should also be noted that from this joint work we have the learning that the union makes the strength and that when we join our efforts we multiply our benefits in every sense
Momo is an educational, artistic, transversal and intergenerational project that promotes urban creativity, a new model of union between art and the city, where the work adapts to the needs of space and people in an integral and organic way. Besides contributing to the regeneration of the park through community intervention, it gives value to the territory and helps to reverse situations of inequality. We believe it is vitally important to be able to cooperate throughout the process with as many partnerships as possible and coming from various fields to ensure inclusion, diversity and affordability.
Fundación Contorno Urbano: Specialized in interventions of microurbanism, public art and participatory processes
Relaciona’t: Social Club Menthal Health
Fundació Orienta: Child and Youth Mental Health Center
Joaquim Ruyra: Public School
IFE Institut Llobregat: Young people with special educational needs associated with mild or moderate intellectual disability
Esplai Xixell:: Community, social and educational center for children and young people
Espai jóvenes Sidecar: Community, social and educational center for young people
Pau Sans: Public School
Benito Menni: Mental Health Care Complex
Japi Association: Training, guidance and socio-educational follow-up actions for young people at risk of exclusion
Through this experience we achieved a total of 170 participants who actively collaborated, showing a great interest in each of the stages of the process, great satisfaction for the knowledge acquired and the experience lived collaboratively. Thanks to the success of this project, we are working with some of these associations on future projects.
MOMO was part of the activities organized by the ecological cultural center MODUL.This was built in 2020 to make the Park a more resilient space,which responds to challenges and needs of the territory. It creates new opportunities, provides a physical space to promote innovative community processes and create new networks of work for community welfare and access to culture, education or leisure.Looking at the needs of the environment,we proposed this project with the intention of working together with users of the park to create environmental awareness, at the same time we value one of the oldest techniques of construction with mud and an ancient art such as mosaic
The impact has been huge, achieving great participation by the different entities. We work with various groups of different ages, such as public schools, immigrants, mental health, social integration, neighbors. We highlight that in our urban ecosystem, working in contact with the land as a material for the construction of the bench, was of positive impact. For immigrants from Africa it was recognizable and binding to its geography of origin, participating in a cheerful and enthusiastic way. For children and young people it means to reconnect positively with this natural element without prejudice and in a lively way, since generally in the city, the mud is related to dirt and often they are forbidden to play with it
For mental health entities this activity fostered the possibility of integration through collaborative practice, where participation does not exist mistakes but rather a collective advance for a common purpose. We also achieved great optimism and demystify that art is only for those who study it
We highlight the participation of collectives and managers who helped this activity achieve inclusion by raising awareness throughout its process, making it clear that we can generate a better environment at both social level, urban and environmental development in a collective and sustainable way
MOMO was selected by the Fundación Contorno Urbano as one of the proposals for mediation and research projects for the Ecological Park. Through a participatory voting process, the community finally chose the projects they wanted to carry out. We compete with more initiatives being our proposal the most voted by the entities and community. This recognition has been achieved, not only for the quality of the proposal, but also thanks to the previous community work we have done in the city, where we have collaborated with different entities in the realization of mosaic murals in the public space where, in a collaborative way, we transform our environment, while strengthening the social fabric and reinforcing the sense of belonging.
Both by the Contorno Urbano foundation and by the entities and neighbors, there was a total involvement. During the execution, we had a fantastic response from the participants, we got their interest, respect and enthusiasm in the progress of each day, positively surprising and energizing the experience. The entities and their monitors met the coordinated dates and returned motivated as a group to participate.
Once the bench was finished, the will arose from both the participants and the Fundación Contorno Urbano, to repeat the experience which filled us with joy and desire to continue with this project.
It should be noted that our project has had a great reception both by the City of Hospitalet and from the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona.
MOMO promotes an active learning process that helps develop skills for action; that is, capacities to imagine, investigate, plan and act.It integrates different fields of knowledge that converge in its action of "learning by doing" applying different knowledge and techniques, with the aim of educating about our impact on the environment and what we can do to reverse it
We create environmental awareness by making ecobricks and using bioconstruction as a construction technique. We also value a method of construction of the native peoples such as adobe and that we make with the local land we have in the park. We ended with the tiling of the bench in mosaic, where they not only learned to work and apply the technique but also on this art and the work and legacy of Gaudi.
All this in an atmosphere of creation of collective process, with respect for the progress achieved with the daily work of all. The art applied in this process, through community creation, strengthens the relationship between the participants and also with the artist-teacher. By creating collectively we strengthen social participation for a more active, committed and aware society about its power to change its environment.In addition, significant and lasting changes occur among people, enhancing their development and evolution as individual and social beings.
Our proposal is based on a participatory and community process in the territory that transforms the environment and empowers the community. In turn, it is committed to a model of cultural democratization, where art and culture are a right and not a privilege. In this way we also manage to dynamize the neighborhood and be part of the renovation of a space previously abandoned and deteriorated, thus providing it with a new life that is born in common, that dialogues with the environment and reflects the concerns and illusions of its inhabitants who become active agents in that transformation. Nothing generates more sense of belonging than something we’ve done with our own hands and effort. By using artistic endeavor we claim ancestral manual work while promoting the role of art in the community, presenting itself as an alternative for empowerment and social change through collective artistic practices and the exchange of knowledge.This process of collective creation allows an intergenerational community dialogue between participants, in which new spaces arise to create, share and learn in a group and organized way, through activities that recompose the weakened social fabric, enhance community organization and empower participants.
Momo managed for several months to raise awareness and work collectively with 10 groups with a total of 170 people who actively participated throughout the process. In addition, since schools teach about the 3R concept, our project could be part of the mandatory curriculum and involve other children in the manufacture of ecobricks from the school classroom.
Once the bench was made, the impact by the community of users and residents of the park has been phenomenal. So much so that they want to replicate more furniture for the Park with this technique.
In turn, several collectives and schools are interested in collaborating on other projects using this technique.
We highlight the innovative nature of the project thanks to its multidisciplinary dynamics, where through its stages we discovered step by step its physical transformation, achieving a stimulating activity for all and metaphorically positive. We bring to the ecological park a unique bench in its form and of varied and cheerful colors that endures in time. For the city of l'Hospitalet, one of the most densified in Europe, it is of great necessity to articulate this type of spaces that include intergenerational experiences and dynamics with existing entities positively strengthening the social network of support to the community.Undoubtedly we see possible to replicate this project and experience in other neighborhoods and territories that need it. Before the ecological park existed this was an abandoned space full of garbage of all kinds and frequented by drug addicts. Now all that has changed positively, the place is reforested, there are recreation spaces, gardens and equipment rooms for different experiences, so it is demonstrated that community recovery of this type of spaces is vital.
MOMO contributed positively to this community project of the Park and the Fundación Contorno Urbano in terms of content, learning and creative innovation with the construction of the bench, empowering participants and being an example of change for the social environment. Also this invoice of artistic work in the public space with its materiality is respected by those who usually vandalize the spaces, since we imagine they appreciate the collective and artistic challenge,that when developed in the public space could observe in its process and stages, which has generated a respect for the work done.We highlight a viable technical process and long-lasting materiality in the public space, since the materials occupied and the ceramic coating is ideal for outdoors, highlighting its easy cleaning and maintenance and its permanence
MOMO promotes an active learning process that helps develop skills for action; that is, capacities to imagine, investigate, plan and act.It integrates different fields of knowledge that converge in its action of "learning by doing" applying different knowledge and techniques, with the aim of educating about our impact on the environment and what we can do to reverse it
What is special about MOMO is its ability to be easily replicated in any geography since much of the materials used are found daily in our environment. Thanks to the convergence of techniques such as ecobricks, bioconstruction in adobe and mosaic coating, this can be extrapolated to different types of constructions, such as benches, planters, public furniture or more complex constructions such as houses. Through community work we can replicate this experience and thus be active agents in this transformation process.
The global challenges that MOMO addresses are the current ecological sustainability and how humans can have a conscious relationship with climate change and create a better habitat. Through education with the arts as a bridge of knowledge transfer at a personal and collective level we were able to promote reuse to lower our impact on the carbon footprint. The complete creation of public furniture by the community led to positive and concrete conclusions of social transformation, where as main axis was achieved the inclusion of people and community lacking experiences of this type and as the metaphor says a garden begins with a seed, these experiences promote ecological awareness and makes us more dignified as people in the ecosystem, and is the little seed we should plant everywhere.
