Abstract
Sandbox is a non-accredited training programme in the performing arts and digital technologies for young people in four blighted neighbourhoods in Panama. In this paper, I reflect on my role in the design of this programme, how it was later implemented and whether it contributed to processes of economic development. To guide this reflection, I use a social capacities framework, where economic development is seen as a set of dynamics that enhances human flourishing (James 2018). The paper uses a wide range of data sources, including interviews with participants of the programme. My reflection concludes that programmes such as Sandbox work more effectively not when looking to create jobs and income, but when they aim to develop the capacities of participants to discover who they are within their own social context, helping them come closer to the labour market.
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