Zwin-Up

Salam!

Following the tradition for interns, Resilient Communities recently carried out its 4th Zwin-Up event in Tameslouht. In Darija, zwin literally translates to “beautiful.” The purpose of the Zwin-Up activities is to spread beauty and to encourage the community to come together to be a part of the beautification project, giving a sense of local ownership and pride.

Starting our day at 7:30 am, Malika and I had a delectable breakfast at our riad. Sitting in the interior courtyard, we were served coffee and juice with pastries, msemmen (A pancake-like bread that has a crunchy texture at the edges and fluffy interior), and beghrir (A crepe that has a spongy and soft texture with many holes to one side) that were eaten with the choices of butter, cream cheese, jam, honey, and amlou — A Moroccan dip made from toasted almonds, argan oil, and honey. 30 minutes later, we walked our way through the medina and found L24, the bus we needed to take from Marrakech to Tameslouht.

Arriving in Tameslouht around 15 minutes before 10:00 am, Abdo — A partner of Resilient Communities and the director of Youth Without Borders for Development — picked us up and drove us to the youth center where we were introduced to everyone participating in the event. The associations present were Youth Without Borders for Development, Afak Association, Tameslouht Alibdaa Cooperative for Pottery and Ceramics, and Tameslouht Commune. These associations helped organize the logistics of the event, coordinate with the local commune, purchase materials, and bring in volunteers from within the area!

After having some refreshments over light conversations, we started making our way to the Dar Chabab neighborhood where we would carry out the activities. A few of us organized pots while the others prepared the soil, placed a shrub near every pot, fetched shovels and buckets, and mixed paint. Splitting into groups, we worked efficiently to fill the pots with dirt, pot plants, paint the pots, and paint the walls. My group helped fill the pots with dirt and pot the plants!

I found the motivation in the local volunteers so inspiring as they were very encouraged to make their neighborhood a more eye-catching place! The volunteers aged from 7-years, to around my age, to older people who wanted to see a more beautiful community for themselves and the children!

People in the neighborhood started coming out of their homes, offering their extra pair of hands, water, snacks, and their water source to wash our hands. It was a sight I would have never gotten to see if Zwin-Up did not happen — Volunteers enjoying the activities, children running up and down the alley, people having happy conversations, everyone dancing with the music!

At the end of the event, 60 pots were potted with shrubs and the walls were colorfully painted. Together with 130 pots of previous Zwin-Up events, a total of 190 pots have been placed! The entire community expressed their utmost engagement and desire for growth and development. What an amazing achievement by everyone!