News

GFDD/FUNGLODE is delighted to report on the progress of the ReCrearte program, which has experienced great success in the first few months of 2014, spreading to new communities throughout Santo Domingo.

Throughout the months of January and February, a series of workshops were organized at the Frailes community center and the Loyola School in Santo Domingo. The objective of the workshops was to raise awareness on the trash epidemic, and reflect on the need to take care of one’s surroundings, home and community by reducing solid waste.

Under the expert guidance of artist Bertha Santana, the three hour workshops taught students how to use recycled paper, plastic and fabric to create allegorical masks and decorations in preparation for Carnival. Environment and natural resource related themes such as air, sun, earth, water and biodiversity served as the inspiration base for the elaboration of masks. The activity also provided an opportunity for students to explore Dominican cultural and national identity.

A total of 8 workshops were held during the first two months of the year, including:

• Four sessions at the Los Frailes community center, attracting mainly children aged between 9 and 16 years old. The workshops began on January 18th and continued on consecutive Saturdays until February 15.
• Three workshops were held in coordination with the Eco Loyola, Loyola school’s environment club. The workshops began on January 27th and continued the following two Mondays, February 10 and 17 from 3 to 5 pm, attracting adolescents aged between 14 and 16 years old.

Tentative Agenda of the program until April 2014
On February 20th, the ReCrearte program held the first in a series of more than 20 workshops scheduled to take place over the next few months at Community Technology Centers in Santo Domingo. Organized in collaboration with the Progresando con Solidaridad program, the workshops will be directed at special needs children and elderly adults from the communities of Boca Chica, Capotillo and Herrera. The program aims to reinsert marginalized groups into society by helping them build their sense of self-worth.

Throughout the months of March and April, ReCrearte will also continue to expand its reach to support underprivileged women, working in partnership with several organizations such as the Mirador Cultural Center and the Beth Hashem Cristian Church in Santo Domingo. The workshops will train women how to generate crafts from waste, with the aim of encouraging income generation.

For the first time the ReCrearte program will also be collaborating with Peace Corps “Brigada Verde Conference,” to be held April 12 at Rancho Campeche in San Cristobal.

About ReCrearte
The ReCrearte Program (www.r3crearte.org) is an initiative of GFDD/FUNGLODE that was launched following the success of Bertha Santana’s Recycled Art workshop during the second edition of the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF) in 2012.  The main objectives of the program are to raise awareness for environmental issues among Dominicans, while at the same time enhancing the protection of the planet and its natural resources through the promotion of the three golden rules of proper waste management: reduce, reuse and recycle. Via this system of proper waste management, the program seeks to empower women, youth and children by launching a unique recycling scheme that can become a source of income and entrepreneurship for individuals and communities. Each session begins with an introductory 30 minute lecture, followed by an art project for participants to take part in using materials found in the local community and focused on a specific topic of the month.

The long term goal of the initiative is to create an annual schedule of at least 30 workshops in provinces across the Dominican Republic, spurring a new generation of artists that can serve as multipliers and waste management leaders in their own communities.

If you wish to find out more about the ReCrearte program and its activities, please visit www.r3crearte.org.