Operation Karumbé

Abstract

Operation Karumbé (O.K.) arises from a need, from a reunion contained by the pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, that materialised in voices, stories and life stories of two populations that cohabit the territory of the “Islita” (La Plata, Argentina): turtles and people. It was born at the end of 2020 as a device in which many extension projects we work at C.C.E.U Nº 6 (Barrio Nuevo-Ringuelet), of the UNLP, come together. From this multi-actoral device, which sought to reestablish contact, O.K. was born; first as a story by Exploracuátic@s and then as a shell that opens to us together with the project Yo sé quién soy. With this story that mutated into radio drama scenes, based on collective co-construction, we sought to reflect on the urban streams where turtles and people live; at the same time, we were building environmental educational content with various members of the territory. From that seed arose a territorially anchored project that sought (and seeks), to collectivelly create in situ different materials that dialogue with local environmental and cultural knowledge, taking freshwater turtles as an identity symbol. From a plural approach, from our critical, integral and transdisciplinary positioning that above all includes looking again at the environment from the arts and games, new and diverse proposals emerged that put into circulation dialogues, plastic and corporal expressions, new theatrical scenes and performances, sound design, drawings, music and dance. In short, based on the adventures of three children we try to address different problems using turtles as a symbol, promoting care for the environment and interpersonal relationships, where the right to art, play and science enable sociocultural integration.