The First Meeting: Sunday, February 25th Our journey began at the Department of Research and Development in Innovation (DCDI) at UNATC. Here's a recap of what happened: Introduction and Mapping Exercise: Participants created a collective map and introduced themselves, sharing their motivations for joining the program. Program Overview: We discussed the fellowship's objectives, the structure of the meetings, and the working methods. We also had presentations from the co-organizers and hosts. Team Formation: The 5 teams were formed, and the hosts and co-organizers presented the case study situations, identifying key actors and hypotheses related to common interests with them. Initial Discussions: Each team discussed possible working hypotheses and past tools used, preparing for fieldwork application in the case studies. Role-Playing Challenge: At the end of the session, a role-playing challenge was launched, which needs to be resolved by the next meeting on March 10th! Looking Ahead Stay tuned for more updates and details as we embark on this exciting journey of urban exploration and community collaboration. #UrbotecaFellowship2024 #Urboteca #ParticipatoryUrbanism #CoNECT #jpiconect Join us in making a difference in urban spaces and building resilient, sustainable communities!

In 2014, we laid the foundation for the Urboteca project with a mission to promote participatory urbanism and educate communities about urban planning. Over the years, we have been dedicated to developing practical skills for young professionals eager to work alongside communities to tackle urban challenges. Building on this legacy, we launched the CoNECT project in 2022, aiming to enhance collaboration between professionals, social initiatives, and residents to transform cities into more sustainable and resilient places. Embarking on a New Edition With great excitement, we announce the new edition of the URBOTECA Fellowship program. This year, we invite students and graduates passionate about architecture, urbanism, landscape architecture, visual arts, performing arts, anthropology, and sociology to join us. This program offers a unique opportunity to deepen your understanding of urban environments and engage directly with communities to develop solutions for real-world urban issues. Program Overview The URBOTECA Fellowship 2024 spans a 15-week journey beginning on February 25th. Throughout the program, participants have the chance to investigate topics of public interest, actively participating in diagnosing urban spaces and facilities. Who Should Apply? We are looking for deeply motivated individuals who are students or graduates in fields such as architecture, urbanism, landscape architecture, visual arts, performing arts, anthropology, or sociology. If you are eager to engage in a creative and multidisciplinary dialogue, this fellowship is for you. You will work in teams on real case studies, developing projects that make a tangible impact. Why Participate? Participating in our Fellowship program means developing essential practical skills to help neighborhood communities better manage their urban environments. You will receive support from experienced mentors and have access to a wealth of knowledge, as well as material and human resources, to support your projects and ideas. What We Offer The program offers a unique learning and development experience, providing access to the Portable Urboteca and a network of international mentors and specialists. You will work on concrete cases such as Depoul Victoria, Malmaison, and Cartier Creativ, contributing to the creation of participatory solutions. Collaborative Opportunities You will have the chance to collaborate with a team of recognized professionals and mentors who will guide you throughout the program. This collaboration will enhance your skills and broaden your understanding of urbanism and community engagement. Application Details Fill out the application form by February 15th, and on February 19th, you will find out if you have been selected. #UrbotecaFellowship2024 #Urboteca #ParticipatoryUrbanism #CoNECT #jpiconect

L’association Radio Declic a accueilli Maria, Kelly et Dean, élèves et éco-délégués au collège de La Courtille à Saint-Denis, ainsi qu'Elsa Goujon et Marie Laumond, architectes de l'atelier d'architecture autogérée, pour parler du projet EcoLab93. La discussion s’est orientée autour du travail réalisé par les élèves du collège, et des ateliers menés avec l’équipe de AAA. Le podcast est à retrouver sur le site internet de Radio Déclic, dans le lien suivant : https://radiodeclic93.fr/.../ecolab93-college-la-courtille Toutefois, lors de l'enregistrement, nous avons malheureusement rencontré des petits problèmes techniques, indépendant de notre volonté, ce qui a eu pour conséquence l'altération du son que vous allez écouter et nous nous en excusons par avance.

Le projet WikiLab93 a continué avec un nouvel atelier participatif organisé par AAA au collège La Courtille de Saint-Denis. Sous le regard attentif et en suivant les conseils de Fabien David, paysagiste, les élèves de 6ème ont pu explorer l’étendue enherbée de la cour du collège, choisie pour accueillir le futur EcoLab. L’objectif de cet atelier a été de penser l’aménagement paysager sur des principes écologiques et de renforcer la biodiversité dans la cour du collège. Dans un premier temps, les élèves ont parcouru la parcelle afin d’observer les plantes déjà existantes sur le site et d’en découvrir leurs caractéristiques. Ensuite, à l’aide de bêches, les élèves ont fait plusieurs tests pour étudier la composition du sol : est-il argileux ? Calcaire ? Acide ? Grâce à du vinaigre et du bicarbonate, ils ont testé la composition du sol afin d’en connaître ses composants. Dans un second temps, les élèves ont identifié les espaces qui pourraient être plantés sur la parcelle. Répartis en deux groupes, ils ont tracé l’emprise au sol de ces emplacements à l’aide d’une corde. Fabien a ensuite présenté plusieurs espèces de plantes ainsi que leurs particularités. Sont-elles rapides à pousser en contribuant ainsi à la réduction du CO2 émis dans l’atmosphère ? Conviennent-elles à des sols calcaires ? Sont-elles comestibles ? … Suite à cette présentation, les élèves ont pu choisir les espèces de plantes les plus adaptées que nous planterons ensemble lors du prochain atelier qui aura lieu début Mai !

On March 13 we visited and talked with the promoters and owners of Las Comadres. An establishment that sells organic, artisanal and local products that, without renouncing its pride as a store, is also a means of learning, a meeting point, a space open to creativity and an asset in local networks that rethink in terms of responsible consumption and food sovereignty. Another formula of community resilience that is built from the initiative of two women with clear ideas that from the beginning have wanted to develop their project in an urban environment different from the most common in this type of business. In a neighborhood that straddles the socially more modest and multicultural northern peripheral areas and the reactivated and gentrified north of the historic center. A lively residential and commercial environment, defined by the mix of its own location, which facilitates diverse demographic and social profiles to be co-participants of different and responsible ways of consuming. On this occasion we have been accompanied by students of the Degree in Geography and History of the University Pablo de Olavide, from the subjects "Gender, Society and Culture" and "City and Urbanism", collaborating with CoNECT. From the experience of Las Comadres they have recorded a podcast in RadiOlavide about ecofeminism and will prepare a route through the neighborhood to expose to other colleagues the interest of experiences that take up and review the urban-rural hybridism as a social and ecological opportunity.

The researcher Marian Pérez has participated in the Descubre Foundation podcast "La ciencia también se escucha" on the occasion of the celebration of International Women's Day, in the series "Andaluzas y Científicas''. In this episode of March 7 she has talked about feminism and its evolution throughout history and has shared the projects in which she participates, including the CONECT project. You can listen to it here: https://t.co/fFY74XHMfo

Students from the undergraduate courses "Gender, Society and Culture" and "City and Urbanism" are collaborating with CoNECT. Luis Cabello Ordóñez, Lucía Chávez Méndez, Alejandro Claramonte Rendo and Manuela Romero Rodríguez, fourth year students of Geography and History, as part of their collaboration with CoNECT, have recorded a podcast in RadiOlavide. In the podcast they reflect on ecofeminism and everything they learned after interviewing, together with Antonio García, those responsible for the organic farming store Las Comadres.

On March 21st we kicked-off the CoNECT webinar series with a discussion of transformative learning. We live in an era of poly-crises which challenges us to constantly adapt to new circumstances. Learning is a clear prerequisite for societal transformations, but the current situation offers relatively few opportunities for the kind of learnings needed to find avenues for real transformation. Whether in the classroom or in the community, formally or informally, at all ages and levels of ability, how we teach and learn marks our ability to spot opportunities for intervention, connect dots, and create relationships that enable change. Hence, aligning with the goal of the CoNECT project to recognize and enhance capacities for action, this first event focused on the practices of learning to inform resilient transformations. Professor Ashraf Salama’s thoughtful presentation traced the intellectual history of transformative pedagogies in architecture and urbanism, from the ‘unquestioned canonical’ schools of the 19th and early 20th centuries, through the experimental phase of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, with critical, participatory, digitally enabled, and design-build pedagogies establishing a foothold in different architectural schools, to the current moment where a new wave of transformative pedagogies focuses on redefining the everyday, decolonizing thought, questioning the hidden curriculum, and advancing transdisciplinarity. Key to transformative learning practices is to recognize their plurality, their focus on holistic learning rather than overly disciplinary education, and their commitment to challenging power structures and established systems. In the context of urban and architectural training it means that alongside skills that distinguish architectural and urban design as professions, there is a need for students to continuously question the brief, to develop skills for social analysis, and to connect design thinking with a focus on challenging the status quo. A (somewhat rhetorical) question inquired into whether we even need architects in the traditional sense in today’s society. What will the role of the architect be in the near future, and are we sufficiently preparing students to become mediators, facilitators, organizers and connectors...? Dr Antonija Bogadi, representing the Circular City Challenge (CCC) project of the JPI-ENUTC funding scheme, delivered a passionate complementary presentation introducing the CCC methodology for circularity education for teenagers. The methodology puts into practice many of the principles of transformative pedagogies through the application of a participatory approach aimed at addressing everyday challenges in urban neighborhoods, empowering youth to act, to reach out to other stakeholders, and to define realizable projects promoting circularity within their own sphere of influence. The CCC project developed a set of tools available for educators, alongside the stepwise approach to engaging with teenagers. The application of the methodology in the first pilots suggests that, despite high level of climate anxiety, youth find that getting a grip on how they might make a difference, and reaching out to other actors in their communities that are active in circularity initiatives, develops a sense of agency and empowerment. The discussion following the talks gave the floor to participants from various backgrounds to bring in their own perspective on the topics. Importantly, it was evident that the need for non-canonical and/or transformative learning opportunities was perceived as pressing in many different domains, from law to industrial design, and in relation to different stages of education from formative years to life-long learning. Furthermore, participants gave evidence of both forward steps (towards different variants and understandings of transformative learning) and backward steps - testifying to the challenges of promoting transformative practices, especially in formal education where the confines of existing models can be stultifying. Nevertheless, the discussion remained optimistic, ending with a few interventions that broadened the scope of education toward professional practice and the need for spreading transformative pedagogies across borders (the example talked about a project working with Ukrainian architects to increase their capacity to act in reconstruction processes). We look forward to welcoming you to the next installment of this series in mid-June. We will discuss urban commons in the context of JPI-ENUTC projects, as well as hearing from a guest speaker, and presenting a brief peek into the exhibition ‘Together Tomorrow: Redefining Everyday Practices’ (working title) put together by architecture and urbanism students at Eindhoven University of Technology.

Le 29 Février 2024, l'équipe AAA a déplacé l'exposition Ecolab dans la maison de quartier, en suivant la scénographie proposée par les élèves, mais adaptée a l'espace disponible. Sur les trois murs du hall on peut y découvrir les démarches, les ateliers réalisés par les élèves et les esquisses du projet. Une presentation au public aura lieu le 23 avril à 17h lors du conseil de maison. D'ici là l'exposition est visitable sur les horaires d'ouverture de la maison de quartier.

Lors de cet atelier du 2 novembre 2023 au Lycée avant le Lycée, les partenaires actuels du Terreau se sont réunis pour travailler à la co-création des outils du Terreau. Tous les participants ont sélectionné des projets à partir de la liste d'idées rédigée lors de la table ronde précédente en Septembre - nous avons chacun priorisé 3 projets sur lesquels travailler. Les 4 projets sélectionnés à partir de la liste d'idées précédente étaient les suivants 1. Lier l'écologie à d'autres activités (le théâtre par exemple) 2. Co-créer une charte du Terreau (avec les citoyens, les associations et la ville) 3. Créer un lien entre le Terreau et la Maison du Patrimoine (dont nous sommes membres) 4. Créer une monnaie locale Nous avons travaillé en petits groupes. Chaque groupe a reçu une page contenant des questions sur le qui, le pourquoi, le quoi, le où, le quand et le comment, ainsi que des cases à remplir afin de créer un projet viable. Nous avons également établi une liste de choses à faire pour chaque projet, afin de pouvoir commencer à développer ces projets immédiatement. La Charte du Terreau était particulièrement urgente, car nous envisagions de la présenter au premier Conseil Local de Transition Écologique (CLTE).

En Janvier 2024 nous avons commencé a développer une page web pour le projet TerrEau, un endroit pour réunir et accéder aux outils que nous développons avec les partenaires locaux. La page se trouve ici. La, vous pourrez accéder au calendrier partagé TerrEau, la charte TerrEau, et la carte TerrEau. Nous continuons à développer cette page et les outils de partage et collaboration sur la transition écologique, avec les partenaires et de façon collaborative.

Le  21 Décembre 2023 nous avons lancé l’exposition EcoLab au Collège La Courtille à Saint Denis. Des élèves éco- delegués ont co-conçu et co-construit l’expo avec AAA et les facilitateurs de CoNECT. L’expo montre les dessins, des photos et des textes expliquant la proposition pour un espace écologique dans la cour de l'école. AAA est en train de préparer le dossier de conception, pour construire l’EcoLab cette année.