Make community, appropriation of public space with furniture

The solution was a co-design of urban furniture between students and neighbors for the San Juan neighborhood, with the aim of generating security, community, entertainment and improving the aesthetics of the space.
The solution addresses the constant problem of neighborhoods in Latin America and the Caribbean, where spaces are regularly designed without taking into account the people who live in the environment.

The problem is the security and social integration of the community.

The problem is in the population of the San Juan de Guadalupe neighborhood, which covers around 5,000 people.

The contributing factors are insecurity in the neighborhood, the popular civic education, the non-recognition of public space as a space that can generate community, the non-recognition of the cycle path as an element of generation of a cycling but pedestrian culture as well.

In the analysis of the problem in the meetings with the neighbors was the part of the integration of the bike path with the neighborhood and how this integration could generate identity, communication, community and therefore security.

The design of urban furniture was based on the problem of the neighborhood so that the designs could add up and help to integrate the community and that it was not only an imposed and unused furniture. The neighbors collaborated with the students to co-design.

The students had the help of their teachers, of IMPLAN and also of people from the culture department who had previously worked with the neighbors, this helped to socialize ideas and understand needs. There were several sessions where the students listened to the neighbors, they knew the neighborhood and the needs, after this the students made design proposals, which the neighbors reviewed and for which they gave contributions, there were several corrections in two ways to reach a final design The solution addresses their needs since the neighbors were heard, the students were able to identify what design could achieve the security they wanted while generating community and security in the space.

The urban furniture project responds to the need for everyday life in the Barrio de San Juan de Guadalupe. 

It should be mentioned that the material for the creation and development of furniture was specifically fluid concrete with coloration. The factors that were taken into account for the design of the street furniture collection were socialized with the neighbors of the Barrio de San Juan de Guadalupe are; the color and the material that identifies them that is the pink quarry, protection for the cyclist and pedestrian, and the promotion to the culture of the separation of the garbage. The urban street furniture that was designed and developed for the Barrio de San Juan de Guadalupe is composed of; trash can, parking for bicycles, modular benches, planters and confinement for cyclists, all made of fluid concrete. The fluid concrete is a material with the following characteristics; the possibility of adapting to organic forms, its chemical composition helps to generate coloration between warm or cold tones. It is commonly used in construction as for landfill, bases and base for roads and paving.

All this was in collaboration with the IMPLAN (Municipal Planning Institute) team and with the private business Cemex (mexican cements) team who guided the students in the elaboration and in the technical part of the design construction.

The urban furniture was given the color of the mexican pink quarry that exists in the city. Therefore the furniture fits with the colonial urban landscape of the neighborhood

The final designs were approved by the neighbors of the neighborhood

The innovation was on different scales, from citizen participation to the creation of objects. The innovative thing was the work that was done with the different institutions and the neighborhood, making the neighbors part of the project, as well as responsible for the creation and care of the designs that were put on the street. Also part of the innovation was also working with concrete forms and inks that had not been worked as the trash can that holds its own lid, this was a challenge in the development of the object. Likewise, the experience of the students and their development of competences when entering scenarios that they would not have imagined, for example, dialogue and negotiation with the neighbors.

The theory of change was applied step by step and was noted at the end of the project. Initially, the neighbors had doubts about co-designing with the students, the type of project and its feasibility.

With the passing of the weeks and with the appointments that were given week by week, both neighbors and students realized that together they could make a change for the community, create a safer space, a living space and a space that could be used, as well as being part of the bike path as part of your neighborhood and giving this uns meaningful community. In the delivery of the project, the neighbors received it and gave a few words of the joy that they were accused of having new furniture and having participated in it, they promised to take care of it and live it properly

More than 2500 people impacted in this project, which is the people who are part of the neighborhood.

In the year for the type of avenue and daily passage of people who could use, the impact can be more than 5,000

In 5 years the impact can be more than 15,000 people, given that it is a busy avenue and that on weekends there are many people who meet in that neighborhood.

We want the students to continue impacting the community that this is the first one and that the monilary post remains fixed. In the following years we want to do the same in different communities, generate community, security and integration with urban furniture that helps change the lives of people living in the surroundings of each community.

It is an enriching exercise where different actors benefit simply from the fact of interaction, from knowledge of one another and in the end having a safe public space, where they can have fun, live together and widen their community

The barriers that are currently monetary, we constantly have training partners with whom we participate as this time Cemex that put the material for the furniture, however to carry out this in shape and continue impacting spaces in the city, capital is needed to generate furniture with better quality and with greater technological challenges, we do not seek to always cement the material with which it is made, we seek to experiment with various materials that are sustainable, durable for the environment and the climate of the city, at the same time they are User friendly.

We are constantly looking for training partners who join the project and who can contribute to society from their side. Partners who really seek to add and a better city. Once we have the yes of the training partner to contribute the material and part of the technology, we analyze spaces in the city and talk with the government to see how the initiative can be of greater impact and that the resources obtained can have a better use .

The project although it is in the prototype phase was implemented, that is, the prototypes are in the public space and are being used by the community.

We constantly visit the space to analyze how they are being used and if the objectives set from the beginning have been achieved.

9 students, 

3 teachers, 

5 people from Cemex who contribute to the technical part

10 neighbors

We are a small team of a university that decided to collaborate beyond the classroom that allowed us the neighbors to accept us easily and negotiate with them the type of furniture, at the same time that the institutions believed in us to make a change that went beyond put an object and beautify the area, if not create ties and reflection.

We are working with the city government (city planning institute, municipal culture management) and CEMEX (Mexican cements). All are training partners, that is, they are willing to collaborate further for a social and city good.

It is planned that it be through donations by the training partners as it has been until now. We are looking for companies that want to modify environments and that have within their mission and values helping society. Therefore the sustainability of the project will be through donations.

We believe that applying to this award can help us  with support, which could include mentorship, incubation and acceleration, capacity building, and connection with experts.

we could have a greater impact on the city and easily map the neighborhoods that can be modified to stop this kind of actions and make changes in the communities to have a safer and happier city