Picture your Story Erasmus Project

Project Title

Picture your Story

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for youth

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Inclusion – equity; Migrants’ issues; Romas and/or other minorities

Project Summary

The Picture your Story Strategic Partnership aims to develop new tools to connect youth with different cultural backgrounds to enable them to build strong, resilient, respectful and peaceful communities. To do so, the partners of the project will develop a combination of picture language and storytelling tools, that can be used by youth workers all over Europe. The final result of the project is a digital toolkit, containing these newly developed tools, that is freely accessible for everybody working with youth with different backgrounds in- and outside the EU.

The problem of conflicts between youth with different backgrounds and the fear for the ‘other’, destabilizing communities and areas, is a common issue for the whole European Union. As the situation in many of the member states of the EU is quite tense, influenced by the current influx of refugees (which is only a catalyst for a fear that exists already for longer), the main subject of the project addresses all countries of the EU. Therefore, building stronger, respectful, peaceful and resilient communities is an up-to-date topic within the European Union, also because cooperative communities add more value to the (economic) development of Europe.

Of course, the fact that there are conflicts in several communities all across Europe and the knowledge that solving them is beneficial, both for the happiness of all Europeans and for the economic growth of the EU, is far from new. And several programs ran and are running to prevent and solve conflicts. However, not always with a great effect and impact. Most partners came across these programs regularly and felt that they lack sustainability. And, honestly, many of these projects are incidents with good intentions that miss a profound theoretical base and/or a rooted foundation in experience.

Various methods have been and are being developed to achieve this and prevent and/or to fight conflicts caused by differences. Some of them are based on the presumption that by encouraging people to meet and get to know each other peace between them can be encouraged. Although we endorse this presumption, we also notice that many programs focusing on connecting people with different background/identities do not have the desired effect, certainly not in the long run. Put in other words: they are often not sustainable.

There is clearly a need for new methods and tools to connect youth with different backgrounds living together in (potentially ) conflicted communities in Europe (also according to the Need Analysis the partners made)

That is why we, a partnership in the field of youth work, social work ans social research, want to develop a new and innovative methodology and toolkit based on picture language and storytelling that can be used in potential conflict areas/communities in order to foster mutual understanding, respect and acceptance amongst divers people in that area/community, to enable them to work towards a resilient, respectful, sustainable and cooperative communities

We deliberately chose for the combination of storytelling and picture language because we see that these two fields are complementary and interweaving the two adds extra value. Using picture language strategies helps groups in getting insights in similarities and differences between individuals and cultural groups and in starting to share stories about it. It is a strong tool in a time in which visual communication is very important especially amongst youth (see the success of media like Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook and Pinterest). We use their language to invite them to meet ‘the other’, to start listening to the story of the other and to start to create mutual understanding. However, the use of picture language has its limitations. To create empathy and by that mutual understanding and respect, an extra step is necessary. That is why we want to combine picture language with storytelling tools.

Storytelling tools help to guide this sharing and to get it into a direction that it fosters mutual understanding and respect. In this process, encouraging empathy towards the other through stories is the main focus. Research, like the Do the Right Thing research by Movisie, show us that the impact on the long run of interventions stimulating empathy a is way bigger than of many other activities. Previous projects of the partners of the project give us the experience that working with (personal) stories is one of the strongest tools in creating this empathy.

Project Website

http://www.pictureyourstory.eu

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 195259,13 Eur

Project Coordinator

Storytelling Centre & Country: NL

Project Partners

• VIESOJI ISTAIGA SOCIALINIU MOKSLU KOLEGIJA
• SEIKLEJATE VENNASKOND
• STICHTING HOGESCHOOL VAN AMSTERDAM
• Asociación Cultural por la investigación y el desarrollo independiente del teatro profesional en Andalucía
• Youth association Info front – Prilep