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Renzo, the toymaker: the list of my professional experiences in London

Since January 2004 London is been my second home, where I enjoy living in a very cosmopolitan challenging town.
- As a Londoner, my first work experience was in February 05, with Kelly Summers - family learning coordinator.. Supported by her, I have led four toy-making workshops with different groups of parents, which were reported on the Isle of Dog local newspaper.
- In June I started part-time collaboration with WAES (Westminster Adult Education Service) Family Learning, in the Amberly Centre. Working with Micky Garvey (session organiser, 020 76418197, mgarvey@waes.ac.uk) I run family toy-workshops, which involve parents in a collaborative activity with their children, in different contexts.
- Alongside these workshops I also work for HEC (Humanities Education Centre), London Tower Hamlets, Tel 02073646405). In this context, I run toy-making workshop with schools, in which homemade toys are tools to promote Global Citizenship, to build cultural instruments and stimulate a critical view on the current system of consumerism.
Recently, through the HEC organiser I have expanded the range of my teaching competences, running toy-workshops for teachers (the referent is Sophy Mackay (hec@gn.apc.org) and collaborating at the School Linking project.
For these occasions the toy-workshop is linked with waste education, and the teaching process is supported by my small exhibition of home made toys - mainly made using plastic bottles, and handout instructions ("Easy ways to make by themselves simple toys").
- (12/2005 – on-going collaboration) Westminster Children’s Libraries, running workshops for children; referent: Mary Enright (Manager of the Westminster Children's Library Service);
- on-going collaboration with the Victoria and Albert Museum, leading workshops at the Sackler Centre for Arts Education.
- (09/2008 - on-going collaboration) toy-making course with families at the West London Academy; sessions with parents and children of primary school happened every Saturday morning; sessions with parents and toddlers happen at the Islip Manor Play Centre every Tuesday and at the Limerees Play Centre every Friday from November 2011 to February 2012 (Ealing Family Learning Services).
- (from spring 2006 and 2009) realising small scale projects in different primary schools: Thomas Fairchild Community School in Hackney, Edward Wilson School and Wilberforce School, l'Ecole Bilingue in Westminster, and many others primary schools all across London;
- (08/2006) South Bank University, taking part in the Summer school project; running a workshop for teenager;
- (08/2006) Playday 2006, 2007 and 2008 working with Hackney and Tower Hamlets Play Association;
- (September 2006 and February 2007) Toy-making sessions with staff of Westminster Early Childhood Services;
- (June 2007) Training session with librarian staff of 4 Idea Stores in Tower Hamlets;
- During Summer 2006, awarded funding from Westminster City Arts for the Big Book Box project (the BBB), aiming to raise awareness of the importance of recycling among people of all ages and cultural backgrounds. "The extraordinary journey of an ordinary plastic bottle" storytelling was created for this purpose.
In partnership with Tower Hamlets Waste Education project, he held toy-making workshops for families and primary school classes at the Museum of Childhood, London, Bethnal Green, from January to October 2007. In that time, "Toys and Recyclables" collection (some of his handmade toys built with recyclables) was on display at the WestEnd World section of the Museum.

Starting in May 2007 and in partnership with Camden Green Fair he began a collaboration to set up The Handmade Go-Cart Club.The project aims to create an additional playful way to make people aware of the importance of play and live in child friendly cities, by running go-cart making workshops for families and go-cart playing activities in the streets. From January 2008, with the initial support of www.local4global.org.uk, Westminster Recycling Team, and Westminster Adult Education Services (WAES) the "Toy Resource Boxes" project will become part of a long term plan, aiming to involve many local schools and community groups. The aim of the project is to promote the link between Recycling issues and Global Education through toy-making activities, using recyclable materials and stimulating children’s and parents’ participation. To support and promote children's toys imagery I have created the www.ilovetoymaking.com website (work in progress), collecting images of toys made by children for the children and adults' memories of their childhood.

- To develop my teaching abilities, I have completed the WAES City and Guilt 7407 Further Education course for teachers, Stage1.
- Graphic Designer and web-designer BiTEC level 3 (Westminster - Amberly Centre College, and Kensington and Chelsie - Hortensia college).

Renzo on Internet

TOYS AND RECYCLABLES The collection is part of a new enterprise project between the Museum of Childhood and Tower Hamlets Waste Education Project - Friday Late Create at the Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green, London - Toymaking workshop with Renzo Laporta: WINNER "Best Documentary" Limelight Film & Arts awards 2008 - Play and the global dimension in Early Years settings : plan and feedbacks - Big Book Project: a short review - LONSAS Arts Directory - Manifesto: I bambini I giocattoli ed il pianeta - Children toys and the Planet -

He has had an Enhanced Disclosure Check within the last three years and I can produce evidence of this on request; other references and project documentations are available on request.
London, April 2011

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