Rainbow Audio-visual literacy for Youth Organisations

Main focus of this strategic partnership is on increasing quality of youth work in Europe through supporting professional development and capacities of those who work with LGBT+* youth, as well as through supporting youth workers in developing and sharing effective methods in reaching out to diverse groups of young people, including marginalised young people, young people facing risk of social exclusion and young people outside education and employment. Within the framework of this project we will explore and educate professionals working with LGBT+ young people about the benefits of audiovisual literacy with special emphasis on digital storytelling. These methods and tools can be applied in a diverse context and with various target groups, but considering the current social issues in Europe, we would like to turn special attention to opportunities to use digital storytelling and audiovisual literacy in order to empower the most vulnerable groups of young people such as LGBT+ youth to support dialogue and appreciation of diversity in society, combat social injustice as well as to enhance entrepreneurial mindset and citizens activism. As follows, this project is much about empowerment of those who work with LGBT+ young people and young LGBT+ people themselves and via this to change public perception of LGBT+ community. We aim to empower first two target groups to start the change that is needed in their own life to become more successful and content, as well as to become change makers in their communities and societies. Moreover, the concept of the project is based on the idea that personal, community and social transformations are interdependent. One affects the next, and one can limit the other if not transformed. Our approaches to learning and activism looks at change, both creating and sustaining it, from an integral framework. Storytelling theory helps us to understand how personal, collective and social systems are intertwined and how working with personal stories can purposefully move toward radically new ways of being, new practices and structures and become a leverage to holistic social transformation. The impact of digital storytelling lies in its power to foster individual and collective transformation at the same time. Additionally, Audiovisual literacy builds in us the ability to think critically, become smart consumers and producers of information and act from the point of empathy. We expect that the proposed learning activities will help professionals and partner organisations working with youth to design and deliver more powerful activities to their target groups. This project builds upon the advantages of the digital era, meaning that digital tools and materials will be used and created in order to provide youth workers and educators with innovative educational solutions. Within the project digital educational resources will be developed and effective use of digital technologies and open pedagogies supported in the education, training and youth field will be implemented.