In 2014, Imagine More worked with 1bag1world, a San Diego-based nonprofit focused on decreasing pollution from single-use plastics, especially in the ocean and water resources. Imagine More helped organize and implement a trip to Ensenada, Mexico to work with women & children survivors of drugs, alcohol, and abuse. This two-day program aimed to foster community, healing, and sustainable living through artwork and enagement with the outdoors. It also aimed to teach the women a practical skill to add to their fundraising efforts for the recovery center: "plarning," or the creation of baskets, bags, and other handcrafted items with "yarn" made from recycled plastic bags.
Over the course of several months, the Imagine More + 1bag1world team fundraised, recruited volunteers, and sought out donations of materials for the project. Volunteers were trained in the basics of arts-based group therapy, as well as the craft skills they would need to teach the women. Educational materials were created and translated into Spanish to leave with the center. The program itself shifted perspectives and opened hearts, as the two groups of women cooked together, crafted together, collected litter in the surrounding countryside, learned about each others' lives, and discussed some of the brightest and darkest times they'd been through. It was a privilege to be involved! |
