Educommunication
Educommunication
Educommunication is an interdisciplinary collaboration between multimedia, education, and communication. Today, it is imperative to know how media outlets organize in order to share information and to understand their impact on people. Though educommunicative practices, we create spaces for civic participation and social empowerment.
Learn how we can align this discipline to your interests and needs in order to promote and share your projects.
Connect with the Network: Stories, Music, and a Map to Discover Puerto Rico
Families take part in a reading, music, and interactive map experience at the Jane Stern Community Library in Dorado.
ChangeMaker Foundation participated in the Jane Stern Community Library’s “Magical Days!” event as part of its “Connect with the Network: Getting to Know Our Roots and Land” route. During the gathering, families were introduced to the organization’s interactive map, which consists of a digital tool allowing its user to discover butterfly houses and bomba and plena projects across Puerto Rico.
We also read the children’s book Monarca, sparking a conversation about butterflies and the importance of caring for natural spaces. A bomba and plena live demonstration then followed, introducing the children to our traditional music and its instruments. Through storytelling, music, and participation, the activities brought families closer to the foundation’s culture and conservation of spaces pillars.
The experience continued beyond the library, though. Families can now use the map to find initiatives related to what they learned, see where those specific initiatives are located, and plan their own visits. In this manner, educommunication connects an in-person encounter with a digital tool that allows families to keep exploring their cultural roots and natural surroundings.
Educommunication in Action: Community, Pollinators, and Conservation
Participants in the guided visit to the Pollinator Garden at the University of Puerto Rico Botanical Garden, held as part of the “Mariposario Comunitario Canejas Reverdece” project.
The ChangeMaker Foundation organized a guided visit to the Pollinator Garden, located at the Botanical Garden of the University of Puerto Rico, as part of the programming for the project “Mariposario Comunitario Canejas Reverdece.” Community members joined us to discuss and reflect on the essential role that pollinators play in our lives and the importance of natural spaces for the community, such as gardens and butterfly houses, which advance environmental conservation efforts, create areas for recreation, and contribute to our social well-being. Not only that, but the occasion also allowed participants to share their knowledge and experience in butterfly farming. By offering these types of activities, our goal is to encourage community members to participate in the development of initiatives and projects that improve Puerto Rico’s social fabric.
Connect with the Network: The Interactive Map Connecting Reading, Our Roots, and Our Land
Community members participate in a shared reading experience and learn about the “Connect with the Network” Interactive Map at the Ricardo S. Belaval Library in Fajardo. This visit is part of the “Connect with the Network: Discovering Our Roots and Our Land” route, launched in June across cultural centers, libraries, and community organizations.
ChangeMaker Foundation hosted “Connect with the Network: Discovering Our Roots and Our Land,” an educational and community-centered event for older adults. During the activity, participants learned how to use the “Connect with the Network” Interactive Map, a free digital tool for discovering cultural, environmental, and community-based initiatives throughout Puerto Rico.
The experience featured readings of Sofía y su tambor de bomba, Entre Bombas y Plenas: Nace Sirena Caribeña, and Monarca. These stories encouraged conversations about Puerto Rican identity, cultural traditions, and the importance of understanding and protecting the natural environment. The selected books also connect with ChangeMaker Foundation’s pillars of culture and the conservation of community spaces.
By bringing together Puerto Rican literature, community dialogue, and digital technology, the event promoted the exchange of knowledge and introduced participants to projects that enrich Puerto Rico’s culture, ecology, and recreational life. The activity was made possible with the support of 2Gen, the Autonomous Municipality of Fajardo, and the Ricardo S. Belaval Library.
Mercado ERRE: Connecting Responsible Consumption Initiatives
Participants explore the map, featured on ChangeMaker Foundation’s website as the Network Movements Directory, during Tito Matos Fest. This initiative highlights cultural, community, and ecological projects across Puerto Rico.
ChangeMaker Foundation’s participation in Mercado ERRE was part of its ongoing efforts to expand the “Conéctate en Red” Interactive Map by incorporating initiatives focused on responsible consumption. During the event, held at El Bastión, CMF introduced the digital platform and engaged with vendors, projects, and organizations that promote reuse, waste reduction, and more sustainable consumption practices.
The event also created opportunities to build relationships with local initiatives, guide individuals and organizations interested in joining the map, and increase the visibility of projects that bring together sustainability, the creative economy, and community engagement.
Tito Matos Fest. Connecting Communities Through the Network Movements Directory
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Participants explore the map, featured on ChangeMaker Foundation’s website as the Network Movements Directory, during Tito Matos Fest. This initiative highlights cultural, community, and ecological projects across Puerto Rico.
ChangeMaker Foundation’s participation in Tito Matos Fest offered an opportunity to introduce Conéctate en Red, known on the organization’s website as the Network Movements Directory, to community members. This digital tool was created to showcase bomba and plena initiatives, community butterfly gardens, and other projects that promote collective well-being. Through demonstrations, educational materials, and conversations with attendees, the event fostered learning, exchange, and civic participation while strengthening connections among culture, community, and ecology throughout Puerto Rico.
Canejas Reverdece Community Butterfly Garden: Environmental Education and Civic Participation in Caimito
Educational workshop on the life cycle of butterflies offered to members of the Caimito community.
The ChangeMaker Foundation is leading a new project to create a community butterfly house at a rescued school in Caimito, called Mariposario Comunitario Canejas Reverdece. We invited Ian José Pérez, biologist and founder of the Mariposario Arlequín, and Geonela Lamboy agronomist to give multiple educational workshops on the life cycle of butterflies to interested members of the community. Such encounters encourage the citizenry to participate in initiatives that aim to develop accessible spaces for recreation and collective well-being.
AgroInnova and ChangeMaker Foundation: A Strategic Partnership to Empower the Citizenry and Agricultural Communities
Empowering citizens through the sharing of experiences of agro-entrepreneurs who graduated from AgroInnova. ChangeMaker Foundation educommunicated on the agricultural market. At the Plaza del Mercado in Caguas, PR.
Developing projects in work collectives is fundamental to achieve social impact. Organizations benefit from one another as they share ideas, resources and better practices. ChangeMaker Foundation (CMF) contributes to the strategic development of AgroInnova through educommunication and research. Participants in AgroInnova learn the theory and gain the necessary practice to develop their initiatives into a thriving business through curricula and mentorship. CMF provides research tools to measure learning and impact objectives as well as audiovisual, cultural, and educational content. The goal is to place the groups’ talents at the service of the projects and their participants.
ChangeMaker Foundation: Media Education in P.E.C.E.S. Communities
A community meeting in the southeastern region of Puerto Rico aimed at developing better digital communication skills across generations so they are able to identify and understand correct, reliable, and accessible information.
Observation and active listening are valuable actions to understand the needs shared by a community. ChangeMaker Foundation (CMF) uses ethnographic tools to evaluate civic activity and designs educational experiences to teach different community groups. We assess their needs and contribute to collective well-being through educommunication.
Sustainable and Purposeful Social Enterprises
Participants of the Social Enterprises: Tribe of Entrepreneurial Leaders workshop exploring business models with social purpose and strategies anchored in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in collaboration with Taller Salud and ChangeMaker Foundation.
In collaboration with Taller Salud, we promote social entrepreneurship as a tool for change through a collaborative approach, integrating participatory methodologies and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Promoting social initiatives led by different groups is essential to bring about sustainable transformations.
Waves Ahead and ChangeMaker Foundation: Shared Learning for the Common Good
An educational session with Waves Ahead on organizational development and community project planning.
Waves Ahead and ChangeMaker Foundation are learning together about nonprofit development and community service project planning.
Restorative Dialogues: Community Healing Through Image and Memory
Participants in a restorative justice circle. At the center, paper plates with written words. An emotional and unifying atmosphere.
This project, led by Waves Ahead and in collaboration with ChangeMaker Foundation, integrates restorative justice practices as key tools for community healing. Through restorative circles, we create a safe space in which images, memory, and personal stories help guide emotional repair processes, especially within vulnerable communities. These sessions draw on ancestral traditions and adapt to contemporary contexts to address both micro-aggressions and broader traumatic experiences.
Conversing with Dr. Inés Rivera-Rivera: Youth and the Sociocultural Impact of Educommunication
Dr. Inés Rivera-Rivera touching on youth, culture, and society.
In conversation with Dr. Inés Rivera-Rivera, we delved deeper into the challenges and opportunities faced by Puerto Rican youths, all through the lens of educommunication. The chat, recorded as a podcast episode, constitutes an innovative tool to foster critical reflection and active participation in social and cultural processes. ChangeMaker Foundation promotes these initiatives as part of its commitment to community leadership development and to the creation of educational content that inspires social transformation.