Empower citizens to transform communities and

actively participate for a more united and just city, country and world.

COMMUNITEAMS empowers citizens by

encouraging active participation in order to transform, unite and strengthen

their community.

Strengthen the identity and the sense of community of a

vulnerable population through social and artistic processes.

Rescue underused spaces in vulnerable communities to

create common areas where the population involved can

share their collective identity, recognize their

interconnection and improve social cohesion.

Improve the social cohesion of vulnerable communities

through citizen participation, by encouraging students,

teachers and parents to interact with the target population

and work for a common goal.

Detonate social artistic projects

that inspire and empower

communities to create more

projects on their own.

As a school community,

accompany the target population

and facilitate both projects to

last.

COMMUNITEAMS began in 2010 as a

collaborative effort to work

with Colectivo Tomate, a Non-

governmental Organization

created by four former

students whose objective is to

regenerate communities

through social processes by

creating murals on the faces of

the houses. The designs

uncover the identity of those

involved; as they speak of the

past, present and future, of

who we were, who we are,

and who we want to be as a

community.

The first project, along with Colectivo Tomate, was in Xanenetla, a

neighborhood in Puebla s city center, which has been declared as part of the

World Heritage by UNESCO. Although Xanenetla has played an important role in the history of Puebla as one

of the original barrios, it has been abandoned and currently suffers from

economic hardships, which have led to a critical state of ruin that increases over

time and contributes to crime.

In the initial stage, the school

community and former students

of the American school of

Puebla, along with homeowners

participated in the creation of

35 murals.

The result was an urban

improvement, a stronger sense

of community, citizen

participation, economic growth,

teamwork, and the possibility of a

brighter future for Xanenetla.

A barrio that was once classified as “dangerous”, became an attraction

for local and foreign tourists who wanted to see the murals and become

acquainted with its people s stories. Neighbors who had never met each

other now gather to talk and organize to do more for their community.

Citizens in Xanenetla realized that, when united, they could attack any

problem, achieve anything, and build whatever they needed and wanted.

Xanenetla has a very young population. Every afternoon,

most of the children from the barrio go out to play on the street while

their parents work. This makes them very vulnerable to dangerous

situations or even illegal activities.

Quickly the organized community realized it was very

important to offer a safe space for these children to

grow. This was seen as a new opportunity and both

Xanenetla and the school community arrived at the

conclusion that the construction of a community library

would be an excellent solution

Again the American school of Puebla became involved in the

construction, execution and coordination of this community library which

seeks to create a space for children, young people, and adults in the

neighborhood and surrounding areas where they can

have access to cultural codes, encourage

reading, education and development.

In the beginning the space

allotted for the community

library was just an

underused room filled with

rubbish, with no light or

floor. The American

School students decided to

raise funds in school, with

the help of teachers and

parents to buy materials for

the construction of an

adequate space for the

project.

Once the construction began, the students designed the space to have

the necessary tools to work with the children.

High school students organized a book drive within the school

community and the books donated where organized and classified,

according to Dewey Decimal System.

Once the community library was ready, it became an opportunity

for students, teachers, and parents to participate either by donating

books, or by carrying out activities at the library. Since then, every

Saturday a group of students, former students and sometimes teachers

and parents organize cultural activities with the participation of the

citizens of Xanenetla.

Some of the different activities done within the community library

are:

• Readers and Writers Workshop

• Workshops in general

• Reading Circles

• Literary Cafes

• Book Fair

• Storytelling

• Reading Marathons

• Evenings of Theatre and Cinema

• Temporary exhibitions of photography and painting

• And many more.

It is important to emphasize that these social processes began because of the

initiative of former students from American School of Puebla, whose

concern and social consciousness began at

the school and were so well established that continues to bear fruit.

While the community library is one of the positive consequences of the muralism

project, one could not happen without the other and both improve the social

cohesion of vulnerable communities through citizen participation, and confront

students with realities they even didn t know existed. By encouraging students,

teachers and parents to interact with the target population and work for a

common goal, leadership and social consciousness is boosted and promoted at

many levels.

Young people from the

school and children in

the neighborhood have

been involved in

creating something that

has a positive

impact on their self-

esteem. They have

discovered their

talents, by using their

artistic skills for a

constructive purpose,

rather than destruction.

Students, teachers and parents are always suggesting new ideas and

things that can be done in the community library and with Xanenetla. This shows

a very intimate relationship that has been built between both communities, a

connection between them that could last a lifetime. The school community will

always have Xanenetla to remind us of our responsibility as citizens of this world

and citizens of Xanenetla will recognize their power in spite of their situation, to

participate for a more united and a just world.

The work carried with the murals in Xanenetla resulted in

less crime rate which has altered the idea that citizens have of a

neighborhood that was considered dangerous.

Since 2011 Xanenetla

appears on the touristic

maps of the City of

Puebla, which not only

helped revitalize the area

and increase the income

of local businesses, but

also indicated a clear

sign of the safety the

neighborhood can offer

visitors, who can now

explore without fear.

The community library, is now recognized, as a place that promotes reading and

that can be open to all the neighbors, where many cultural activities are held

which are beneficial for the development of the community.

At the present, there are approximately 35 children from Xanenetla participating

every single Saturday in the activities that the American School of Puebla carries

out at the community library. The project began with approximately eight

children and now there are more and different children participating. This shows

how the community library has become a link between neighbors, promoting the

peaceful coexistence of children and adults, not only in the neighborhood, but

also in the surrounding areas.

While many students continue to work

every Saturday in the community library,

the same social process was just begun

in a new community called Loma Bella.

Loma Bella is a housing unit with a

broken economy and certain safety

issues. There were people who had

lived there for 30 years and had never

done anything to engage with their

neighbors. Students from the American

School of Puebla carried out the entire

social process involving workshops and

different activities to strengthen the

identity and the sense of community of

the target population.

The entire process ended, again with a

mural that remained as a symbol of the

organization and power that the citizens

have when united.

The next project to be done in Loma Bella has yet to be discovered but, a new

bond has initiated between two communities that otherwise would have never

been in contact.

Every COMMUNITEAM involved, being the American School of Puebla,

Xanenetla or Loma Bella, can now recognize their power to transform their city,

country, and world with active and united participation.