The Aalto Labbers spend nine days in the community of 20 de Noviembre, nine days is not much time for achieving a significant impact. To achieve an impact in the peoples lives in the community and in our lives we needed to build trust and relationships. Before going to the community we asked ourselves: is there something we can do that would result in getting to know each other better within a short time span. An activity that could be joyful and perhaps shred false assumptions we have of each other.
We thought about arranging an exhibition where everyone individually could bring an object from 20 de Noviembre and one by one share why that object is important to them. The exhibition was created and held in the community on saturday, it was called Objects of love.
The event brought together about 30 people, everyone presented the object and what it represented in their lives. Many stories was told, stories about the love for the nature and stories about love for the artistry. How for example the work with creating Hammocks cures sadness by putting the sadness in the work and in the Hammock and leave feeling relieved.
The atmosphere was filled with anticipation. A wide range of objects was presented, from plants, crafts, stones to corn. Hopefully the people participating from the 20 de Noviembre found out new things about each other and perhaps they got to experience how their community had made an affect on us visitors. I got to know a bit more about my fellow travellers and got a wonderful opportunity to listen and interact with people I previously did not know, about the things that are important to them. What strike me was how personal everyone dared to be.
In the afternoon the Aalto Labbers visited surrounding communities. We had a stop at a local soap production and also visited an ecotourism site. The site was an example of ecotourism that had started to show results, they had visitors from Europe staying there for weeks. The site itself although beautiful it was not overly elaborate, the nature was the focal point. Which showed potential of creating eco-tourism in 20 de Noviembre, as the value lies in the nature and the community.
It was a day filled with inspiration and inspiring people!
Action Lab Mexico 