Students from the UNR School of Social Sciences are working on a project to improve living conditions in the República de la Sexta neighborhood where the school is located.
A new edition of the Citizen School Lab was held, a project developed by the School of Social and Human Sciences together with the UNR Participatory Budget team. This initiative was the winner of the call for proposals from the Open Policy Institute's international Demo Reset program, in which more than 50 projects from across the global south participated.
The project promotes intergenerational dialogue and the exchange of territorial and academic knowledge. It seeks to empower adolescents as agents of change and strengthen ties between the University and the neighborhood in which it is located. The Lab is a multi-stakeholder citizen dialogue process, which, on this occasion, addressed the issue of public space for children in the República de la Sexta neighborhood.
The first session of the Laboratory took place on October 31 and November 1, 2024, and included representatives from five organizations and 5 students. During these sessions, each organization presented its work and shared a problem with the students. At the end of the session, the students selected three of these key problems for the region through a vote and worked in groups to develop future projects to address them.
The most voted issues were: How can we improve a public space intended for children in the neighborhood? How can we reduce the problems caused to our environment by the garbage we generate at school and in the neighborhood? How can we ensure that most people in the city use sustainable and environmentally friendly transportation?
In this second edition, the school's second-year students participated in a workshop where they presented work canvases on issues and proposals for the Plaza República de La Sexta. This was followed by a space for dialogue, ideation, and feasibility studies, leading to the development of intervention proposals. Community manager, social researcher, and project professional at the Open Policy Institute, Bene Asprilla Mosquera, participated in the workshop.
“The lab is a living instrument that provides students with real tools to be part of a social transformation. These opportunities allow them to develop skills such as dialogue, empathy, and critical thinking while recognizing themselves as protagonists in the community,” said the community leader. She emphasized that through their work in the field, students strengthen their relationship with the neighborhood, create intergenerational bonds, and develop proposals with other stakeholders, in this case the legislative and executive branches of the Municipality. “The lab not only proposes challenges but also activates processes of research, problem identification, and the generation of collective knowledge that show that a different future is possible and that students can be an active part of its construction. The bridges between the school, the community, and the real transformation not only of the Plaza but of the neighborhood as a territory with a habitable future for young people are fundamental.”
The director of the Claudia Voras School considered this opportunity essential for promoting exchange, democratic dialogue, and the development of active citizens. In this regard, she stated that this project addresses actions aimed at improving living conditions in the República de la Sexta neighborhood where the school is located.
Journalist: Victoria Arrabal/Photographer: Camila Casero