"Aouuuh" – A Newspaper in Les Plaines-du-Loup

Develop, design, and create an open and original neighborhood newspaper with a distinctive visual style. A newspaper made for residents by residents.

- Involve residents of the Plaines-du-Loup neighborhood in the design and creation of THEIR newspaper - Identify residents’ needs and preferences regarding the newspaper’s content - Create an inclusive, visually appealing newspaper with high editorial quality - To inform, explain, and provide insight into the neighborhood and its future development - To build community by highlighting the people who live in the neighborhood or bring it to life - To serve as a tool for openness and hyper-local democratic participation - To connect diverse people through a shared goal

A new neighborhood is like the first day of school. Everything is new. How do you find your way around? By knocking on a neighbor’s door? To find out what’s going on, where should you go? Google? How do you put names to all these new faces and all these new businesses? We think launching a neighborhood newspaper would be a great idea. A newspaper makes it easier for those who don’t know their way around the Blécherette Plateau to find their bearings. A newspaper helps you discover who the other people around you are. A newspaper builds connections between people who cross paths without necessarily talking to each other. But wait—we don’t want a “normal” newspaper. We want to create something AWESOME. We’d love for kids to be able to draw in it and for adults to learn something from it. In short, we want everyone to get something out of it. There are three of us! And the neighborhood isn’t just about our ideas and desires. So we thought it would be great to ask the people of Plaines-du-Loup what they’d like to find inside “Aouuuh.” Using all the input we receive, we’ll put together our neighborhood newspaper. We want to create something beautiful—something you’ll want to open and read. By the end of this phase, we’ll have a mock-up. And based on that mock-up, we can start putting the newspaper together. But not before! From there, we’ll start writing articles on various topics, profiles, interviews, and features. We can talk about the past, the present, or the future. We can explore the neighborhood’s goals, its successes, and its failures. We can organize drawing contests. Then, we’ll print the newspaper! We’ll throw a fun launch party to celebrate with the neighborhood. Because yes! We believe that a newspaper isn’t just the rustling of paper as you flip through it alone over a cup of coffee. A newspaper is about people, perspectives, and faces. A newspaper is about connections. And it’s also about parties and music once it’s finished. Finally, we’re not just going to make one issue. We hope this project is the start of a great adventure that will last at least as long as compulsory schooling! Once the newspaper is up and running, thanks to the neighborhood’s support and the development of a real nonprofit structure, we’re confident we can ensure the long-term viability of Le Loup. Hip-hip Aouuuh!

Plaines-du-Loup + Blécherette Plateau