The Ludotecas (play centers) area of the San Juan de la Rambla City Council, led by councilwoman María García, has launched a new edition of the intergenerational project 'Semillas de Futuro'. This initiative, developed in collaboration with the 'Casilda' Women's Association, returns after its success and positive reception last year.
The program's main objective is to create a meeting space between generations, where the elderly teach children customs, traditions, knowledge, and crafts that are part of the collective memory of San Juan de la Rambla and Canary culture.
The initiative begins with two practical workshops. The first will focus on making simple, traditional thread bracelets. The second activity will be dedicated to the celebration of All Saints' Day, teaching children how traditional 'velas de finados' (candles for the deceased) were made using materials like wicks, lids, and oil, also explaining the associated cultural context.
'Semillas de Futuro' is designed as an eminently practical experience, where children learn directly from the elders, who become masters and transmitters of knowledge often not found in books and preserved through oral and family transmission.
Last year, the project covered various activities such as planting potatoes and vegetables, caring for farm animals like chickens, and the artisanal making of leather balls, among other traditional knowledge.
The councilwoman for Ludotecas, María García, highlighted the project's continuation: 'The most beautiful part of this project is that children not only learn a technique or activity but also understand the history behind it and, above all, share time with elders who have much to teach.' The 'Casilda' Women's Association also values the initiative for preserving knowledge at risk of being lost.
The project will continue throughout the course with new workshops focused on traditional customs, crafts, and knowledge, maintaining a formula that combines learning, coexistence, and the recovery of the Canary Islands' intangible cultural heritage.
