Isabella Bazante

Terron Colorado is a neighborhood that belongs to Cali. It is located on the western side of Cali, yet it is not a part of the urban area. Most of the people who live here work in the informal economy and receive very low income.

"Colorado" means colorful. The houses of this region have been painted bright, vibrant colors gradually over time. The organization "Terron Coloreado" (coloreado means colored) recruits volunteers to spend a day (every few months) in this area painting the houses. Each group of volunteers is assigned a house and a color.

This is a great opportunity to meet the owners of the house and all of the neighbors. I really enjoy going up there to paint because I love helping and meeting new people. The kids from the area are especially excited to make new friends.

It is a very enriching experience, and it caused me to want to focus my Personal Project (explained ahead) on poverty, which I am currently studying more profoundly and with an Economic focus in my Extended Essay (requirement for the IB program).

This is a great organization that focuses on bringing people together. There are different branches to it, but the one I have participated actively in is the Macro Events. This is when the organization recruits volunteers to spend the whole day with children from marginalized areas. Each volunteer is assigned one or two kids and our goal is to make their day unforgettably fun. Their happiness is priceless.

This allows us to step out of our bubble and meet people that we probably would never meet otherwise. This day the theme was super heroes. We wanted to inspire the kids to look up to positive role models and learn the importance of values and helping others.