Playful Communities Watch video

Create Playful Spaces in Your Community!

Playful Communities is a really simple idea - working together we imagine and then create spaces for people of all ages to live, learn and play safely. Through a series of hands on workshops and build days supported by a Community Project Leader we work together to bring colour and energy to unloved and forgotten spaces. Working with local suppliers and trades people as well as volunteers, thi...

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Playful Communities is a really simple idea - working together we imagine and then create spaces for people of all ages to live, learn a...

Read more

Join the communities already benefitting from starting a Playful Communities

You'll get guides and resources on how to bring this idea to life.

There is no funding available for this idea, but these resources will still help to make your project happen!

Start a Playful...

It was amazing to experience the Urban Acupuncture process and see how their team engaged kids, their families and friends to dream and build together. The final result couldn't be any better, the neighbourhood is transformed, all the colours hav...

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Playful Communities
Luciane Paula
ex diretora do Centro Assistencial Vedruna (CAV)

How to start a project on ChangeX

  • 1

    Create your project page

    Click the green start button to register and set up your project page. It’s quick, free and easy.

  • 2

    Complete a 30 Day Challenge

    Complete simple steps in 30 days to get your project off the ground.

  • 3

    Activate your project

    Follow the 5 Step Guide and your action plan to bring the project to life.

  • 4

    Share impact

    Share impact by posting a summary and photos and completing a survey.

Great for

  • Organizations that already develop some kind of activities with children
  • Communities looking to share ideas, skills and resources
  • Communities who want to build play spaces
  • Kids who want to play
  • People who want children to have a safe place to play

Playful Communities project essentials

5 Step Guide

  • Connect the teams
  • Hear the dreams of the community children
  • Imagine the space
  • Get Building
  • Celebrate!

Time

Suggested: We work with communities for 5 weeks through a series of workshops, hands on co-creation days and the all important celebration event to officially open the play space. Before the project starts: important to consider 3-4 weeks to make arrangements with the Municipality (authorization to transform a public space) - if needed.During the project: 6 to 10 hours per week, during the 5 weeks of the project itself. There are 5 online workshops between the community and our team lasting 1.5 hours each. Besides that, the community will organize and develop 2 hands on events to transform the chosen space, according to the project co-created during the process.

Resources

More information on how to get started and any resources shared by the Playful Communities

59 Playful Communities projects have already been started

See where

Meet the Social Innovator

Welcome to Urban Acupunture! We want to tap into your imagination to find out what you and your neighbours dream for where you live! Imagine working with your friends, family and kids from the local area to co-create a new from old. Imagine building beautiful spaces where kids, young people and adults can play and hang out safely? You know exactly what your community needs and we're here to listen and then make it happen.

Andrea Sender White

59 Playful Communities projects have already been started

See where

Members

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Why a 30 day challenge?

    The 30 Day Challenge was developed by our Team based on our experience working with communities. We’ve learned that the first weeks are critical to build momentum and get off to a good start with any community project. Teams who complete these steps within the first month are much more likely to successfully complete their project!

    The Challenge is a series of simple steps that each applicant has to complete to get their project off the ground and unlock funding, if there is funding currently available for that idea in your region. Steps include watching a video and/or reading content, having a call with a ChangeX team member, forming a team so that you have support, having your first team meeting, sharing a team photo, and sharing a project action plan.

  • What can funding be used for?

    Once funding is received it can be used to cover direct set-up costs of the new community project. For example space rental, insurance fees, seeds and planting materials, tools, training fees; pretty much any materials you might need for a project that benefits your community.

    Funds cannot be used for the costs of work that has already been carried out, costs unrelated to the setup and maintenance of the new project, payments to group members for their work on the project. Funds can’t be used for the promotion of religious causes, non-charitable activities, sponsorship or fundraising events. Please read the terms and conditions for further details.

  • How do I know if there is funding available?

    On idea pages, if there is funding available for the idea in your region you will see “Funding available” and the region listed in the turquoise box. When you first login you will also see a green banner at the top of the screen saying “live funds near you” if there is funding available in your region. The ChangeX homepage will feature those live funds near you.

    A note on the waitlist: when all the funding has been allocated to applicants, new applicants will go on a waitlist. If some applicants that are in the fund don’t successfully complete the 30 Day Challenge their funding will be released and can be then allocated to those on the waitlist. To see if you are going on a waitlist check the main fund page, ideas fully allocated will have the note “Join the waitlist” instead of “Apply to start”.

  • What is ChangeX?

    ChangeX is a platform that connects communities to proven ideas and funding.

    By empowering local changemakers with proven ideas from social innovators and accessible funding from our partners, we aim to build healthier, more inclusive and sustainable communities. Our work is aligned to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and together with our partners, we aim to impact 1 billion people globally by 2030.

    • Communities: Get the funding, resources and support you need to start impactful projects in your community.
    • Social innovators: Connect with local changemakers, access funding to scale your idea, and impact more communities globally.
    • Funders: Fund the themes and regions they care most about, with measurable impact, and at global scale.

    We believe that by bringing the best social innovations and the world’s changemakers together in a shared community, we can accelerate the spread of innovations across the world and have a bigger impact. Together we aim to unleash the potential of changemakers by enabling collaboration, by sharing knowledge and resources, by connecting changemakers across different disciplines and innovations and by opening up access to the world’s best proven social innovations to everyone.

Other ideas

  • Playworks

    Leverage evidence-based play strategies to transform the culture of your recess, classroom, or youth program!

  • Solar Bildung

    Energy transition tangible, positive and emotional for students

  • GIY

    Get together with people in your community and share the joy of growing your own food.

Start a Playful...
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