Innovative #civicstorytelling from RightsCon 2018
Innovation for Change and the CIVICUS Monitor co-hosted an event at #RightsCon2018 in Toronto, Canada this past 17 May 2018. Here, speakers from Afghanistan, Tanzania, and the Philippines came together to share their powerful stories about their fights against government, judicial harassment, imprisonment, and detainment – and more importantly, their resilience despite these challenges and the innovative tools they use to communicate their stories from the ground. Speakers included:
Omaid Sharifi, co-founder of Artlords, which is a grassroots movement of artists and volunteers that harnesses the power of street art in Afghanistan to convert the negative psychological impact of blast walls on the people of Kabul into a positive visual experience.
Gemma Mendozo, an author for Rappler, a citizen journalist platform that captures stories from other journalists operating out of the Philippines and Indonesia.
Maxcence Melo, founder of JamiiForums, the largest social networking platform in Tanzania, largest platform for the Swahili language, whistleblowing staple for the country and active promoter of media freedoms and freedom of expression.
Speakers concluded their session by sharing tips on how we can all improve our #civicstorytelling techniques:
- Be strategic in your narrative when setting your agenda
- Use normal citizens as your base, and make it clear why leaders should join
- In terms of content, you need to have a good team to monitor quality and security
- Making money isn’t easy, so consider using a subscriber model or advertising
- Facebook and Twitter are excellent platforms to take advantage of, but also make use of the common social media platforms relevant to your community or region when cross-promoting
- Protect yourself by making sure officials know what you are doing
- Have a back up plan and make sure you have reliable partners
- Make sure stories don’t just inform, but also have action points
- Focus on human stories
- Pivot off of new developments making headlines that are relevant to your story
- Make use of art as it is a powerful tool, especially street art, and particularly in areas where education levels are low
- Use visuals and urban art as a social cause for good
- Engage, engage, engage! (your audiences)!
For more information, see the event description on the RightsCon program or follow the conversation using #civicstorytelling on Twitter.
– Balance human stories and data. Don’t just provide the numbers. People need to be able to connect to the story.
– Be strategic about the stories you tell and the agenda you set.
Some of my fave tips from #civicstorytelling at #RightsCon.
— Allyna (@wheresallyna) May 17, 2018
Our #RightsCon2018 event with @CIVICUSalliance has concluded with speakers providing useful #civicstorytelling tips like
– monitor security and quality of the stories you tell
– tell human stories
– use art and visuals
– include concrete actions
– and engage, engage, engage!— Innovationforchange (@innovforchange) May 17, 2018
"What will stop you from reporting? Nothing, nothing, nothing…death." Fantastic session on the power of #civic #storytelling! (names protected for safety)
#RightsCon #civilstorytelling @innovforchange @ArtLordsWorld @newmaya @civicus report: https://t.co/dZlhyOTUtx pic.twitter.com/wBgBouQWXR— Petra Molnar (@_PMolnar) May 17, 2018
The government of #Tanzania has set up a number of regulations attacking bloggers. Anyone with more than 1000 followers on Twitter or Facebook constitutes a blogger and is susceptible to harassment, fines, & jail time. #rightscon2018 #civicstorytelling
— Innovationforchange (@innovforchange) May 17, 2018
'Their idea is to kill hope. They attack journalists, artists, civil society. So each of us is trying to keep hope alive. We are out there in the streets telling people "I’m here, I’ll fight you with my logic, my brush and my spirit".' @OmaidSharifi @ArtLordsWorld #Afghanistan
— Innovationforchange (@innovforchange) May 18, 2018
"القصص المدنية هي الحمض النوو للتغيير الاجتماعي". -newmaya #civicstorytelling #RightsCon… https://t.co/4ibaoAz4GU pic.twitter.com/NK116Bvyxf
— RightsCon in Arabic (@rightscon3rabi) May 17, 2018
The Civicus Monitor by @CIVICUSalliance tracks closing civic space challenges across the world. Its getting worse. https://t.co/QLx1uVJVx5 #civicstorytelling #RightsCon
— NoelDickover (@NoelDickover) May 17, 2018
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So inspiring! thank you @ellies for sharing the tips! so simple, logical and powerful!