Project Village's mission is to improve quality of life for families and keep our facilities clean and safe.
For over 20 years, families have enjoyed our facilities - running, playing, gardening and growing. After more than two decades, structures need to be updated and changed. In order to pursue our goal of offering a safe and healthy environment where families can live life to the fullest, we want to improve Mères avec pouvoir's main common area the courtyard shared with CPE du Carrefour.
As the “by and for” approach is an integral part of Mères avec pouvoir, we asked participants and team members through focus groups and written questions what they would like to see changed in their spaces, so that they would be in line with their needs.
Project Village exists thanks to our long-standing partners:
The project is divided into 4 parts :
1 - Security
Children love to explore in the yard - to run, crawl, hide... and we want them to be able to do so freely. By making a number of structural and architectural adjustments, we will ensure that our facilities - now over 20 years old - will be safe in every way, for our participants and their little ones.
2 - Sustainable development and materials management
We want to take a sustainable development approach, in line with Mères avec pouvoir's strategic plan. Through the participants' Green Committee that we set up a few years ago, we will be able to get more involved in this part. Throughout each stage of the project, we'll be thinking about the management of materials and residual waste, as well as building with sustainable methods and materials.
3 - A sense of belonging
When you're in survival mode or going through a precarious situation, it's rare that your daily priority is the design or aesthetic aspect of your environment. And yet, it's well known that the colors that surround us, the layout of our space, or even contact with elements of nature can have a major impact on our mental health. With the creation of two murals in collaboration with MU MTL and adjustments to the signage amongst other changes, we hope to create a greater sense of well-being and visual cohesion in the interior courtyard.
4 - A place to grow and live together
This part includes a number of elements relating to community living, greening and sharing space. Our backyard is a treasure, and we want to make the most of it. To enable children to play freely and enhance the living space that benefits all our families, it's important to redevelop certain aspects of the courtyard. Thoughtful landscaping in line with families' needs will enable more direct contact with nature (education, discovery and awakening of the senses) as well as foster exchange and a sense of community.
Thanks to our invaluable financial partners:
Discover our murals!
Visible from Fullum Street, our new giant mural, created by MU MTL and artist Caitlin McDonagh, is a source of immense pride for our organization. It beautifies the spaces and creates a sense of cohesion between the Mères avec pouvoir and CPE du Carrefour buildings. This mural is a great start to Project Village!
Float Art artist Béatrice sensitively captured the essence of our families, following a co-creation and reflection activity organized by MU. With an impressive number of participants either brainstorming or painting, this second mural – a collective mural, which is visible from Place Dufresne, represents us and has enabled families to take greater ownership of the site!
A major project for our organization
Thanks to a host of partners and volunteers, this magnificent project will see the light of day between summer 2024 and spring 2025.
MU MTL
MU MTL allows us to offer our families, the families who attend the CPE du Carrefour and the passers-by on Fullum Street, two magnificent murals. These murals are intended to represent the participants and their children, as well as their journey and their strength. The giant mural will be accompanied by a smaller mural within the organization, to be created by Mères avec pouvoir families, thanks to a mediation workshop organized by MU MTL. This will certainly contribute to the feeling of belonging to the organization and may generate an awakening to art and creation.
Caitlin McDonagh
Artist Caitlin McDonagh met with several Mères avec pouvoir participants, to better understand what their journey at Mères avec pouvoir means to them. As a result, Caitlin created a giant mural in the image of the families who share our spaces. The mural can be seen from Fullum Street, at the entrance to our organization.
Architecture sans frontières Québec
Thanks to our partnership with Architecture sans frontières Québec and the voluntary help of six architects on their behalf, we will soon have layout plans for the brand-new courtyard, which will meet the needs of the families and enable a building site to be set up over the next few months. The architects came to assess the spaces, held a co-creation meeting with our participants and were able to make a structural assessment of the families' needs.
Société écocitoyenne de Montréal
Thanks to our partnership with the Société écocitoyenne de Montréal, our families will benefit from advice on residual waste management, and our organization will receive consulting services on yard greening and the use of vegetation based on the reality of each family.
Want to get involved?
Several options are available to you:
To support Project Village financially, or if you have any questions, contact us by e-mail: info@meresavecpouvoir.org
