The training course I took part in Croatia - „Voice it” was the second activity of Y-E-N Work Plan „Angle it right!” and followed the topic of digital storytelling and human rights. Before arriving there I had certain expectations, about the people and the training course but from the first contact with the Y-E-N family and the atmosphere in Groznjan I knew this was going to be a different and unforgettable experience.
Our training days always started at 10 o’clock in the morning so we were always well rested and eager to start. The first day was allocated to team building activities and bonding games to help us accommodate with each other and know each other better. We got ourselves to the second day by sharing our arriving stories and what we brought with us, as in expectations, fears and anticipated contributions. The highlight of the day was creating our timeline however we wanted being as creative as we could. Some pretty nice moments were shared and I could feel from that moment that we all had a connection. That feeling was even stronger the next day when we had a free day at the beach in Porec, where we were inseparable: everywhere you could see two or three people discussing for the first time at depth about the things freshly learnt during the previous training days. The following day we proceeded to the technical things about digital photography, video, sound and everything related. Through taking photos and making short videos we learned that our final product will be sharing our life story or a story that changed us using digital tools, while during the last day we will all watch and discuss everyone`s story.
We got really caught up in this task, we were always writing and rewriting our story, at night we used to gather in one room and work further. After having our final form of the story we had one full day of shooting. It was the most demanding day, in groups of three we were teeming the small and crowded streets of Groznjan, creating memories and learning more than ever.
The 7th day was dedicated to human rights and their connection to our lives and stories. We were faced to a lot of interactive questions with which you had to agree or disagree and explain your decision .It was very interesting because we learned about other perspectives on life and the world and also we had the chance to get up to date regarding our rights and how we can claim them.
Finally the most emotional day came, the last day and the day of the revealing of the big stories. Each and every story touched me and made me realize how brave my colleagues are to share such important things about their lives with people they just met. It was the perfect ending for a perfect training course. Not only did the participants gain a lot from this experience but also the trainers shared their emotions and made us all feel united.
I am very happy and full of new knowledge and I feel very thankful for having been a part of such an interesting training course, which combined so many aspects of digital storytelling, social rights and team building together. In the end the most impressive aspect is seeing just how much only a handful of people can achieve if they are willing and motivated, and that gives me great hope for my future endeavors.
The ”Voice It” Project took part in Groznjan, Croatia between August 30th and September 8th 2016.
Text: MIRUNA BELBA
Photos: Youth Express Network
The course report HERE.
