Participate
A workshop - project for telling the Stories of Social Struggle and Change.
- What are the practices, the experiences and struggles for social change that you have managed to achieve or are in the process of achieving?
- What has characterized or characterizes these experiences? What methods were used, if any?
- What can these stories teach to us? How can they modify our social and political processes?
The Popular University of Rome, and the Popular University of Social Movements, UPMS, invites all those who work for social change to recount their experiences, in order to identify and enhance the new social processes.
Aim of the project is to create a digital archive of stories of alternative practices in the different spheres where people struggle for the achievement of human rights and democracy, according to the World Social Forum Charter of Principles: fair trade economy, housing, minorities, multiculturalism, religious dialogue, political dialogue, environment, health, public assets, participation etc.
True stories which speak of the campaigns and struggles in the various spheres to which different movements and groups of citizens are devoting their time: employment, fair trade, housing, minorities, inter-culture, religious dialogue, political dialogue, the environment, health, education, justice, peace, public services, participation ...
Stories which have already come to an end or which are still going on; stories with a successful outcome or which have not had the hoped-for ending, including those which are still in part in the conceptual stages and have not been wholly achieved.
A workshop - project for Stories of Social Struggle and Change
What stories…
The works taking part in the Award can be divided into two areas:
- "Narrations"
- "Studies and Research".
They can be both directly by the protagonists of the struggles themselves or by others; both by individual author, work groups or communities.
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“Narrations”
Works belonging to hr "Narration" category may be given expression in different "languages" for must effective communication:
- Autobiographical and biographical writings
- Photonarrations
- Videonarrations
- Audionarrations
- Other languages.
“Studies and Research”
The "Studies and Research " section has been included in the Award for works dealing - for example - with analyses of social struggles and events which go back in time, with research that links the past with the present (in a historical, sociological, anthropological - or, better yet, interdisciplinary - approach) or works which seek to connect several experiences from a comparative perspective, etc.
However, it is possible to use different narrative means here as well (text, photos, video, audio) in order to render the research work more expressive and communicative.
Both for the "Narratives" and the "Studies and Research" section, it will be possible to submit works produced specifically for the Award as well as works realized previously (including publications or works which have taken part in festivals, reviews, etc.)
The “Stories of Possible Worlds" Award is a way of stimulating the telling of experiences of social struggle and change in order to encourage reflection and share knowledge about them. The true purpose of this project consists in building a Digital Archive, in which experiences and know-how can be exchanged as a contribution to the knowledge and organization of alternative practices.
It is very important, therefor, that the stories include some reflection on the methods with which the experiences of social change have been realized. These may be structured or spontaneous , new or already existing methods....
This will make it possible to share the experiences on the methodological plane as well.
Each story – in this project - will become part of a process of common effort in a sort of "alliance of the stories".
It will be a reciprocal learning experience which aims to be the fundamental driving force of this workshop-project.
Info: Upter, Università Popolare di Roma, via IV Novembre 157, 00187, Roma, Italia.
Tel. 0039-06-6920431 - 0039-3356156851 - info@powos.org - www.powos.org