The Butterfly Effect training
In December 2016 The Butterfly Effect training took place in Italy – a training about raising awareness of the refugee crisis. Adele were there with Xchange Scotland and she wrote this article! Thank you for sharing your experience with us Adele! 🙂
The Butterfly Effect training course was set in a beautiful ecological house/workshop in Cerquosino Morrano, Orvieto (TR). It was also our home for the week, with fabulous Italian cuisine served three times daily from some of the loveliest, most welcoming people I have had the pleasure to meet. Fellow participants came from seven different countries: Germany, Romania, Slovakia, Turkey, Italy, France and Hungary besides the UK. The common language spoken was English.
On arrival at the house in Cerquosino we were asked to leave our belongings in a corner and were then blindfolded and led into another room. There were no words during the process. To begin with I became quite alarmed and my imagination began to run wild, but very quickly I relaxed as I was gently guided to the room which was set up with paints and paper for us to use. This was a fantastic opening exercise in my opinion which introduced the theme nicely. It reminded me that people who flee their homes are very much at the mercy of others. It gave me a tiny insight into the fears that refugees must experience as they are led into unfamiliar situations.
The learning approach was non-formal and each of the seven days training was structured and designed to be interactive so we could share and explore various issues related to racism and hate speech. A typical day would begin at 9am and finish at 7.30 pm, with two 30 minute coffee breaks and a two hour lunch break. At the beginning of every new session we would all participate in an energising activity designed to invigorate our minds; this would take place both indoors and outdoors, and was an aspect of the training I loved as it blew off the cobwebs before beginning the more serious issues. Following on from energisers we would be divided into groups for activities that included using expressive and artistic traits to show for example:
- How migration is actualised via the laws, media, education, employment and discrimination pertaining to participant’s home land. Each of the above headings were written on a big poster size piece of paper and in groups of 6 we went around each heading and discussed e.g. laws in our own countries. The facilitators wrote down each new piece of information and when all the groups had visited each of the headings we discussed it as a large group. It was interesting to note how many of the countries had similar laws and media representations etc, although there were variations.
- The positive/negative aspects linked to migration. We were divided into groups and had to present one negative and one positive aspect of migration in a living picture.
- Other activities encouraged open mindedness and made us pay attention to each other using trust and clear communication, thus making it a safe environment to feel free to contribute to discussions.
- This last point was an essential point when it came to devising our group workshop. This activity used lots of brainstorming/discussion, creativity and teamwork set against a time limit.
- There was a huge emphasis on being mindful also, and reminders of how more beneficial it is when helping others not to forget about being kind to ourselves too.
All the activities allowed for brainstorming within and between groups and enabled realistic ways to find solutions to problems. I particularly liked the opportunity for feedback at the end of activities. To round of the day we would be split into different groups each time to reflect on the day’s events and what we liked or didn’t like. I believe discussion is where great ideas are borne from.
It was my first time being involved in non-formal education and I think it is a very good way of facilitating and devising tools to combat issues which are sensitive and involve vulnerable people.
The facilitators put a lot of thought and effort into delivering the training and by doing so kept it varied, interesting and fun, in spite of the subject being very serious and at times morose. What I loved about the whole week was that I felt safe to express myself exactly as I wanted and never felt I should conform to any other opinion besides my own. In spite of me being a lot older than many of the participants I never felt any differences were made because of my age. In fact I learned so much from my younger counterparts. It was another example of how diversity can benefit everyone.
I discovered many things about myself in the time spent in Cerquosino that I was unaware of. One of which is that despite travelling to many countries of the years I talk way too fast for some non-native English speakers to grasp. This is great lesson to learn as it has taught me that if people don’t understand me, often they will pretend to so as not to appear ignorant or silly, which is not conducive to empowering individuals. Another aspect is that I can feel comfortable interacting and being involved. I don’t need to always be shy or nervous if I am around like minded people, regardless of nationality, experience or qualifications. I liked the realisation that in the correct environment people can and will flourish. All they need is opportunity.
Want to be involved in this kind of training? Please, contact us!
Time to say Good Bye
For all of those who don´t know me, I am the person behind the Social Media of Xchange Scotland. You might have been reading my blog posts and following my updates but probably never thinking about me. That usually happens. All of us face organisational and companies’ accounts as those terrible sellers who wants to put ideas in our minds while we only want to know more about the new boyfriend of that girl who works with us; or about that other boy who used to go to college with you and apparently, has decided to married (too soon, of course!).
But there is always someone behind those accounts. And that´s me. My name is Luna and I was born 27 years ago in Madrid, Spain. Since I have memory I have been thrilled by all kinds of stories. Somehow I ended up studying Advertisement. Over the years I thought that it was the dream job I would had never dreamt about. From a student perspective I felt filled with curiosity and passion for my future, never thinking what I would found later on.
And yes. The fact is that I started working on my field and I didn´t even enjoy. Long meetings after long meetings, eternal hours of work and the feeling that all that work was only for moving money from one place to another. No use for anybody else apart from my boss, our client and our Banks who might have a good day. (They always have).
With sadness and disappointment I had to face the fact that I couldn´t live that lifestyle anymore and I started this adventure called EVS. This is a European programme which allows young people to collaborate with an NGO for a year. I am not going to lie, I barely knew If I wanted to do it, If it was going to be useful for me or not, I just followed my instincts and thought: ‘In the worst case scenarios, It´s a year living abroad and meeting new people’. It wasn’t the best timing in my life, I had a good settled life with my friends and ordinary routines, but there is never good timing on this kind of things.
Glasgow welcomed me with raing and clouds. It was 7 in the morning and Carla, my coordinator here in Xchange, was there with a smile and loads of energy. I will never understand how she does it, but yes, she is a non stop positivity machine. Over this year I have cried, laught, enjoy and fight, I have faced challenges I never thought of. I have evolved in my profession, worked with the European Parliament in Strasbourg, spoke in the Scottish Parliament, created strategies, content, delivered sessions, tranings, took pictures, created logos, promote our projects in more than 15 colleges and universities all over Scotland, created new partnerships and even gardened with our international volunteers.
Let’s go back to the beginning. You might wonder, why did you do it? Well, Xchange Scotland is way more than a simple small organisation led by young people. I have tried to show this in each post and each picture. We truly work to help others, to improve lives and bring opportunities to everyone, no matter who you are, you can learn, travel, discover and evolve. You might never see this, but Xchange Scotland is our crazy Martin always with new ideas, the calm Jonathan and his deep understanding of volunteering, Carla and his ability to deal with ten things at the same time with a smile (and even with a broken ankle!), Julia and her companion that we miss almost every day, Iker who worked hard to make the best of the time he had in Scotland, Katie who helped me in my many grammar mistakes and Shelley, who joined our office not long time ago but that she already brighten everything with her attitude.
And also, Yulia and Misa, whose stories you can find in this same blog, who has been my partners in crime, my flatmates and friends who have being with me in all this crazyness and who I cannot even believe I won´t share flat with anymore. There is no words to convince you to live an EVS experience, but do it. Because there is nothing so unique as finding a new international family.
Gain a nationally recognised qualification
Are you volunteering? Want to gain a nationally recognised qualification that is done inyour own time with support from Xchange Scotland?
As part of Xchange Scotland’s summer programme, we are offering anybody connected to our summer projects the chance to be supported through the Community Achievement Award created by Kelvin College, it an award that recognises your achievement as a volunteer and allows you to gain 4 levels and a HNC in Community Achievement.
The Community Achievement Award is widely recognised by employers, universities and colleges around Scotland. The qualification is a form of recognition for your volunteering. It is great for volunteers who are hoping to achieve a qualification as part of their volunteer journey, great for the next steps in volunteer management, community work and a perfect stepping stone for building your confidence and meeting new people.
How?
Chat with us first or attend an Info session at the Kinning Park Complex community meal, every Thursday evening 5-7pm. Or alternatively we can come to you by meeting for a coffee ,by skype or by phone. We speak with you about the time it will take to complete your award, what is involved and assess your current volunteering role to see what level you can start at.
Want to do it in Groups?
If you are doing it as a group or in pairs, then we can meet up with you all so you are all completing at the same time. You need to fill in an enrolment form and reflection log for every level; we go through this with you!
Commitment: As long as YOU need it get through the level your on!
We want to then celebrate with you!
We will invite you to our celebratory event in the Scottish Parliament in December 2016 to present you with your qualification and give you the chance to meet others who have been doing it too!
Your Expectations
You should expect Xchange Scotland to keep in touch with you and support you in gaining as many levels of the qualification as you and we see fit. You should also expect us to keep in contact with you and send your qualification off to be assessed. You should also expect us to keep you motivated and to keep you volunteering in the local opportunities! All we need from you is motivation and to get excited about gaining a qualification for you’re volunteering!
For more info Contact info: Shelley Talbot- Project Coordinator: Shelley@xchangescotland.org or call us on 0141 237 2430
What is volunteering?
Volunteering is a non paid collaboration with a social good cause. During your time volunteering you will develp new skills, they are called soft skills. For instance, leading skills or communication skills. It is also a possitive way to gain confidence on yourself and use your talents for improving the society. The reason because many people decide every year to volunteer locally or internationally, is the rewarding feeling of it.
Who can do it?
Anyone. Whatever your age, background or work experience, you will have a skill that someone needs. No matter how busy you are, there will be something that you can do. It can be more difficult If you are under 16 but there are still projects for you. In our organisation we work on many projects which are based in Scotland and also with projects based in other countries. We also have different opportunities to collaborate with charities in other countries for a year. You can find all our projects in our website www.XchangeScotland.org
What can I do?
We have many projects around culture and arts, we also have environmental projects, reconstruction projects, educational projects, gardening projects, you could be working with disable people, animals, elder people, etc. There is a wide range of options and even you feel you can´t find a project that you fit in, we are sure there is something for you. You can check all the options in our Database.
Many of our projects are based in Glasgow. To know more about them, you should subscrive to our newsletter and follow us in our social media. In there, we regulary post all the opportunities and which projects are recruiting at that moment.
Want to find out more about volunteering?
You’ll find answers to the most commonly asked questions on our Frequently Asked Questions page.
I had always wanted to travel and volunteer
When living in Glasgow I heard about Xchange Scotland, an organization based in Glasgow that provided volunteering opportunities for young people, in a university fair. I had a meeting with Carla, who told me about European Voluntary Service (EVS). This opportunity really appealed to me; I had always wanted to travel and volunteer, but I never wanted to pay fortunes for it. I started looking for the different possibilities on the EVS database. I had been told that it was sometimes very hard to get accepted to a project, so I had realistic expectations when I embarked on this journey of finding myself a suitable project. I got accepted for a project in Portugal, but unfortunately, there were some administrative issues that prevented me from participating in this project. Xchange Scotland, however, had been very supportive all the way through, and I had been in constant contact with them, which meant I was aware of everything that had been going on.
In January 2016, I applied for a European Voluntary Service (EVS) project in France. This particular project caught my eye because of its location and theme; promotion of youth mobility in a small border town in south-west of France. I had my interview with the coordinating organization, which gave me more information about the possibilities and responsibilities involved in the project. I got shortlisted for this project and eventually I was chosen for it as well.
At this stage I had no expectation, however, because from previous experiences I knew that anything could happen; projects can be cancelled and other administrative issues can cause the volunteer to miss out on a specific project.
I received the good news from the coordinating organization in late April: our projects were accepted and everything was in place for us to move to France. The only fear I had at this point was my French language skills, which were not up-to-date. However, my plan was to keep an open mind and take this as an opportunity to learn a language properly!
My expectations about the project have changed slightly now that I have arrived in France. The initial expectations were to have a set time schedule the minute I arrive in Hendaye, and to start working on something very concrete immediately. These expectation were not realistic, and I have now understood and embraced the way things have worked here so far. I have settled in very well and I have a lot of room for taking initiative and to propose projects that I am personally interested in.
I feel very lucky to have heard about an opportunity like the EVS, and that I have had such a great support system from my sending, coordinating and hosting organizations. This is certainly a once in a life-time experience!
A pledge to continue
“Dear Youth Work,
It’s been a tough weekend! As we gather our thoughts and chat amongst loved ones about what this all means, I have been empowered by the talks people are having in pubs, gyms and buses as we go about our lives. People coming together to let reality sink in, grieve and decide what we will do next as we watch our leadership carve out a new nation.
Having Indy100 point out the 7 stages of BREXIT grief has made this process easier for me, so thanks 1 to 7!
This letter is not to communicate personal agendas or opinions instead it is a pledge to empower and negotiate on your behalf. We, Xchange Scotland have come to terms with our future in European youth work and the future of our strong partnerships in Europe. Partnerships that have estimated over €500,000 spent on youth work in Scotland since 2012.
The Xchange Scotland team are moved by the messages we have received from all over the world, showing their solidarity and support for youth work and for that we thank them again.
We voice our passion and concerns to our fellow partners in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and England, who all work with us in the third sector, social enterprise and youth services. This pledge is to begin a conversation to create a platform that can continue the work we are doing to improve the lives of those most vulnerable.”
Click here to read the full letter: A Letter to Youth Work
Jenn’s adventure in Russia
Day 1 and Day 2
So our first couple of days learning about West-East cooperation has gone very fast! On Friday a lot of time was spent on analysis and semantics; creating definitions and broadening our understanding of words like ‘intercultural dialogue’ and diversity.
‘Building the Kremlin’: How can a group of people collectively follow complex rules whilst acting individually? Everyone wanted to contribute, with their own building-block, and own instructions – it wasn’t possible to build the correct structure in the end, and the group had a discussion about whether sometimes rules can be changed if everyone agrees. Is the final outcome important, or the process itself?
We joked about stereotypes a lot when we had to make up a fictional country, and present its characteristics to everyone in a piece of theatre. Stereotypes can be funny – but afterwards we discussed the effect these jokes can have in a society – some people felt it could be just a joke, while others argued there is always a problem with this. If you repeat a stereotype over and over again, some argued, it can become self-fulfilling. People feel the need to conform to it. Also stereotypes about women, some people felt, are not acceptable because it is connected to sexism, discrimination, gender norms that are harmful.
On Saturday we continued to explore attitudes and stereotypes, but in a more concrete way. When developing a project, personal and cultural differences can be really noticeable – to explore this we had a roleplay, which people found difficult. To be discussing a potential project is exciting and the natural impulse is to be yourself and discuss the ideas – but we were trying also to play a role; some roles were perhaps the opposite of a person’s real personality (focused on detail, or very free and easy, for example).
People spoke about the problems they faced in their own projects when working with people from other countries – what seems normal in one country can seem like a crazy way to work in another. Dealing with and understanding these reactions and differences is a big learning curve. So to help in this learning curve, it’s useful to have a ‘map’ of cultural differences, and we looked at Geert Hofstede’s model. It rates different countries in terms of the various factors that can make it difficult or challenging to work together. So one culture might have a more collectivist attitude, another more individualistic; in one place it may be normal to avoid risk as far as possible and have that as a high priority, but in another people are more accepting of the unexpected, and adaptable to change.
The ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’ factor is about how competitive people are. Russia scores highly, UK quite high too, but Sweden, for example, scores 5/100, and is therefore described as a ‘feminine’ society (meaning simply that co-operation and compromise are valued more highly than competition and aggression).
In putting together a ‘pyramid’ of violence, we considered all the kinds of discrimination, prejudice and violence that can happen in society. We found some of the definitions hard – some terms could come under more than one heading, it felt like there wasn’t that much logic in it, and that perhaps violence is not just physical. We talked about structural violence, economic violence, and how perhaps instead of a pyramid the analogy could be an iceberg – at the top is something that can seem quite unimportant – a joke, a belittling comment, scapegoating – but underneath is a whole structure of power and discrimination (like racism, patriarchy) which means the small action has much larger consequences.
Day 3 and Day 4
Obstacles! What challenges do project organisers and youth workers face? We discussed these in groups and the trainers helped us to consider the kind of challenges faced by youth workers in Russia (bureaucracy, restrictions on ‘foreign-funded’ NGOs and so on). This is important for those based in the west to understand if they want to pursue east-west projects, and we spoke about it for quite a while. It was good to hear first-hand the realities of working in Russia – things can be heavily exaggerated in the media, but on the other hand, some NGOs have faced closure in recent years.
Describing obstacles we had all faced in the past, some scenarios were drawn up and passed on to a different team, which had to find a solution and present it through a small piece of theatre (or sketch). One group had to deal with the issue of an EVS volunteer being bored in their role (or to put it officially, the volunteer’s expectations not being met by the role they’re given on placement). Communication at every step is the answer, the group felt, with regular check-ups between hosting organisation, sending organisation, and volunteer. Steffi also pointed out that an EVS placement is, to an extent, “what you make of it”. Find opportunities to expand what you’re doing, take the initiative, and also recognise that you’re not just there for your own advancement, but to contribute to society.
Other roleplay scenarios involved a topic which came up frequently throughout the week-long seminar: homophobia. What would you do if, as leader of a workcamp in rural Russia, you realised that one of your participants was bullying two others for being gay, and was even telling local residents and stirring up anger towards the gay couple? It was proposed that meetings would be held immediately, common rules of the camp established (no discrimination, no hate speech, no homophobia), and a discussion involving local residents held – but also we recognised that this might not be a solution at all. People disagreed over whether a camp participant who is bullying another can be removed from the camp. At what point is one person’s safety and wellbeing more important than another person’s inclusion?
One of the participants said that it should never be forced upon the person being bullied to have to deal with this. If they don’t want to meet with the people who hate them, they should not have to. You need mediators to stand in between. This a really good point – because challenging homophobia and changing attitudes is not just the job of LGBT people. Straight allies have to take action, step up and stand with their LGBT friends. Not just when there is some crisis, but before anything happens. It’s a wider issue – the need to speak out against underlying discrimination (in all its forms) in society and consider our own roles and privileges in these power structures.
Another big challenge which organisers can face is conflict. When there has been a recent conflict, or just a long situation of tension and anger between region, states or peoples, you have a responsibility to plan any workshops on this very very carefully. We listened to our Armenian and Ukrainian participants on this topic in particular. Natalie spoke about a conflict reconciliation workshop she attended in Georgia a couple of years ago, where the tasks included telling stories from each country’s history. For two of the participants, their histories contradicted each other, and they quickly became very emotional and angry. The workshop had to stop and many thought it couldn’t continue at all, as people were so upset. But the trainers had considered this conflict and were prepared for it; they managed to get the group to consider other contested narratives, and other countries which previously had a lot of hatred between them (i.e. France and Germany). The two participants, in the end, worked together on a collective narrative, having talked about how there was possibly truths and untruths in what they had been taught in their respective countries.
Some recommendations to come out of this session: That projects and camps should always have ground rules about behaviour and discrimination; rules that everyone has to agree to uphold. Also that it’s absolutely vital to be very knowledgeable about the context of the project’s topics, the participants’ backgrounds and experiences, and any potential conflict or issues that might arise. It highlighted the need for very very detailed planning when creating a project – what why who and when, down to the last detail, giving participants clear objectives.
After the inspiring, motivating meeting and exchange with Russian volunteers in the city of Nizhniy Novgorod, we embarked on our second last seminar day. It was the time of truth for our training course, as we would finally form into groups and develop our project plans.
However, we had to pave the way in order to take this final step. So we discussed the principles of the Council of Europe which organizes the Erasmus+ program. Those include smart, inclusive and sustainable growth, ruled out in general political guidelines which concern resource efficiency, the protection of biodiversity, sustainable management of resources as well as the responsible increase of global and inner-European competitiveness. While discussing those issues, most of us found the criteria of the Council of Europe quite arbitrary and little helpful for our project ideas. Especially, the repeated stress on competition and growth without a contextual explanation raised some irritation among us. Nonetheless, the criteria were still seen as useful in the way that we should reflect on and refer to the named goals in our justifications for the project proposals, and should hence know them well.
Subsequently, we mapped our interests for projects and formed into project groups. Each person could propose up to three project ideas which were ordered thematically in a free space within the circle of our seminar seating. Then, we went to the clusters of projects which attracted us the most, individually. The resulting groups then quickly engaged in a first dialogue for the concrete topics of their projects.
In a next step, we looked more closely at the specific requirements for Erasmus+ projects. In order to process the concerning documents on project budgets, impact and dissemination and on the award criteria for rating the importance of projects by national agencies, we separated into small groups. Each group worked through one of the documents and discussed questions. Later, each individual reported back to their project group. In the reflection of this method, many underlined and appreciated the notion of horizontal learning in this method, without a teaching authority apart from ourselves. By that, we acquired a maximum understanding of the document. We also received analytical skills which will ideally allow us to transfer the know-how on our actual projects.
By making use of the competences from the autodidactic workshop, each group spent the rest of the afternoon writing their project drafts. The project deadline, greatly announced by the National Agency of Estonia, was at 7 pm. Four groups managed to hand in their project drafts in time in the face of simulated technical errors during the application process. Yet, one group missed the deadline and was asked to apply again for the next date – this said, of course, with a twinkle in the eye.
In total, this demanding system of writing project drafts proved very efficient and rewarding, as we were exposed to a realistic stress situation and could feel our efforts materialize into a more concrete plan. Beforehand, we had been warned of the careless enthusiasm in volunteering project ideas which often resulted in cool, sexy and attractive projects made by cool, sexy and attractive people. Unfortunately, those criteria aren’t included in Erasmus+ award categories, so it was a useful lesson to do some serious planning.
At the end of the day we were exhausted, yet excited to share our results with the other groups and insisted on a free space to present each of our project drafts on the last day.
However, the night wasn’t over with this conclusion – we still celebrated our intercultural evening. Each one of us had brought wonderful delicacies and cultural testimonials from our homelands, including Ukrainian vodka, German Jägermeister-liquor, Armenian poetry, Scottish dance and Russian melancholic songs. The performances were spectacular. Especially the Russian and Ukrainian choreographies, their catchy tunes and dance moves accompanied us for the whole evening. The organization and preparation of the intercultural evening showed, what an ambitious and sociable group we were, with a lot of thought and work put into our country presentations even before the time we had known us. It was a worthy party night for our seminar, and it left us quite out of shape for the last day.
Day 6
On the last day before departure, most of us clearly started to think about the upcoming farewell, and of the memories of the intercultural evening. Still, we tried to keep the tension and motivation high as we wanted to present each group’s projects to the others and connect our ideas. Fortunately, the National Agency had allowed all projects to be presented and provided further recommendations, too. But before we discussed some general recommendations for project management. In one of our activities, we received a smart grid that evaluates the prospect of a project plan regarding the motivation of organizers, priorities of Erasmus+ and the needs of the affected local community where the project may take place. Every project idea can be measured according to these criteria, Alla said. Hereby, the need and goal analysis should always be in the first place during planning, in order to assess feasibility and the wished-for impact exactly.
Then we finally listened to the five project drafts. They can also be seen on the project category of this website. We were proud to present the outcome of our joint work and many commented that they really felt the different parts of the seminar assembling and materializing in our final projects. Thus, almost two hours passed in the discussion of our projects.
Later, we settled for the last part of the program: the evaluation. As our seminar had been on a tight schedule, we felt ourselves calming and slowing down all the more during the reflection. Firstly, we positioned ourselves in a corner of the seminar room according to individual satisfaction with the training course – in four corners representing 0-100%. Most of us settled between 75 and 100%, explaining our hopes and expectations we had had for the seminar. Yet, some volunteers said that the best fulfilled expectations were the ones that they couldn’t even have thought about before.
During the next round of reflection, giving each person the opportunity to explore their inner attitude and feelings in the plenary circle, we were in unison about the amazing group stronghold and motivation. Also, many thanked Alla and Inna personally for their incredible work during the training course.
In the following exercise, all of us should summarize their experience in one word – and surprise, inspiration and tiredness summed up the spectrum of replies.
Afterwards, we got down to write memory bags for each other – small comments on each of our most appreciated seminar acquaintances. Of course we didn’t have the time to write to everyone, so that many spent the rest of the evening trying to get hold on formerly forgotten memory bag papers to write their last comments.
It became quite clear that nobody wanted the seminar to end, and so most of us went to the bon fire at the shore of the Volga by night together. We sang songs, talked and waited for the first ones to bid farewell during the night. At half past twelve and at five am some of us departed, and our internal WE facebook group was flooded with goodbye-posts and emotional pre-departure pictures. And again, a group of restless visited the bon fire and witnessed the sun coming up above the Volga at half past three.
In the morning, the last of us boarded the seminar bus, and frove away from the lovely spot on the river Volga. We saluted to the hotel, each single tree and mosquito as we went. The training course was over. But WE stay united.
The page was developed by the participants Jen Stout (Xchange Scotland)
and Leonardo Pape (SCI Germany)
European Youth Event 2016
From 20-21 May 2016, two of our team members and it’s volunteers participated in the European Youth Event (EYE) organised by the European Parliament and European Youth Forum in the beautiful city of Strasbourg. As a partner organisation of the event, we delivered our own activity based on non formal education where we asked the participants to think and reflect about how they would build a better Europe. Engaging discussions with people from different countries gathered many ideas and now we want to share them with all of you. We have created a full report where you will be able to read in depth the resulting content of the activity and also our experience collaborating with EYE.
Practical guide to creative activism is released!
This handbook on creative activism is intended to function as a trigger to move from thinking to doing, by sharing different methodologies, best practices, experiences, advice, anecdotes, tips and tricks. The online community and publication created by open and flat structured collective of authors is meant for youth educators, activists, artists, community facilitators and everyone else who believes in progress by bottom-up and a socially engaged microrevolution.
You can find it here – http://www.mastazine.net/handbook/.
You can find stories from different collectives and activists; yay@flautas, Partizaning, Molestar.org, Karsay Dorottya and Dainis Ozoliņš.
And – the project it’s not finished yet! The Handbook is an open process so we are happy to receive more action reports and interviews from around the world. So please spread the word around and don’t hesitate to send us your texts till 1st September on editor@mastazine.net. We are looking forward to reading them and share them with Mašta Handbook readers.
The “Mašta Handbook – practical guide to creative activism” was made possible with help of financial support from the Council of Europe – European Youth Foundation.
