It is a media workshop that builds the capacity of schoolteachers in Tacloban in documenting experiences of children after Typhoon Haiyan, the impacts of climate change on them as well as aide the psycho-social therapy of children affected by the disaster, and through this, move the government to actively fight for climate justice. The 2-day workshop will tackle citizen journalism, video-making, photography, blogging, & children's rights in the context of disasters & climate change. The outputs is a microsite & social media accounts where blogs produced by the teachers will be posted & shared.
Topical focus:
Country:
What locality or neighborhood will your project focus on?
Tacloban City
Describe the specific population with whom you will be working.
St. Therese Educational Foundation of Tacloban, Inc. (STEFTI), whose teachers & students were severely affected by Haiyan, is actively involved in rebuilding efforts & addresses the psychosocial therapy needs of both their teachers & students to recover from the catastrophe that hit their community. Children are underrepresented online because of their limited access as well as the lack of child friendly spaces that draws out their needs & recognize their rights. While their future is significantly affected by disaster & impacts of climate change, their voices are not heard online. Adults such as their teachers who are computer and Internet literate are therefore important in serving as voices for these children. This will be a platform to amplify the voices of this community to the world.
Who else will be on your team to help implement the project?
Nityalila Saulo: http://nityalila.wordpress.com
Ralph Eya: http://ralpheya.com
Darlene Ramos: https://www.facebook.com/inklingfair?fref=ts
Bonifacio Labora: https://www.facebook.com/bon.labora?fref=ts
Mikaelo Aguilar: https://www.facebook.com/miko.aguilar?fref=ts
Renee Juliene Karunungan: https://www.facebook.com/rj.karunungan?fref=ts
Leni Velasco: https://www.facebook.com/leni.velasco?fref=ts
What kinds of news, stories and other content will be created?
We envision child friendly spaces online that respond to the needs of children affected by disasters where they are able to assert their right to protection, psychosocial well-being & education. It would serve as a bridge to recovery & long-term support for vulnerable children. Our vision is for teachers to be able to feature the stories of their students & the experience they went through during & after typhoon Haiyan, the changes that happened after the typhoon, their living conditions now, their coping mechanisms, their reflections on climate change & disaster preparedness, their aspirations & ideals, and how the government is responding to their needs both at home & in school. The content will mostly be videos, photos & articles posted on the microsite & shared in social media.
What technologies and digital tools do you plan to use in the trainings?
Describe the connections that you or your organization have already established or plan to establish that will contribute to the success of the project.
Partnership will be made between Dakila and STEFTI. The project shall seek the support of the Climate Change Commission of the Philippines as well as the Local Government of Tacloban. In the past, Dakila and STEFTI worked through Bayanihan Republic where schoolchildren from other countries sent Christmas cards to students of STEFTI to show their solidarity after Typhoon Haiyan struck. Discussions were already initiated for Dakila to support the psychosocial therapy & rehabilitation efforts for teachers & students of STEFTI. Dakila’s roster of artists & celebrities shall be tapped to act as mentors & help amplify the microsite online through their social media accounts which have large fan base to ensure that the voices of these children are mainstreamed. (ex.http://vimeo.com/84567348)
How many participants do you think will be trained in your project?
There will be 10 participants for the project. STEFTI will help us identify the teacher participants for the workshop. We will leave toolkits for the participants that will enable them to replicate the workshop to other teachers in their school or other schools and other community leaders. An online group will also be made to ensure that the teachers are updating the microsite and social media networks and guide them along the process. The group will also be a platform to exchange ideas and for Dakila to mentor them as needed.
Describe which technologies, tools, and media you will focus on when training participants.
Blogging, photography, video making, journalism & writing, social networking for advocacy & campaigns, digital activism, & strategizing communication – these skills are the expertise of Dakila as part of its Digital Activism Program. It is also adept in creativity & media workshops as it uses storytelling in its Climate School Program. Online tools are the most appropriate technology for this community because mainstream media rarely features the stories of people in the community & depends on what stories will sell. As paid media changes fast, online media allows sustainable story telling by communities themselves & empowers them to tell their own stories with out censorship & financial considerations.
Describe the facilities where you will hold the workshops.
The workshop will be held in a room at the STEFTI school building where in ideally each participant will have one laptop and there is strong and stable Internet connection through wifi. Tacloban is already connected. However, signal is weak in some parts. The team will be bringing their personal mobile phones and use it as hotspots in addition to a mobile internet connection hotspot that can serve 5 laptop units.
What is your current relationship with the community with whom you plan to work? What makes you the most appropriate individual or organization to implement this project?
Dakila is immersed in Tacloban as its beneficiary for its Haiyan relief & rehabilitation efforts. There are plans with administrators of STEFTI on partnership for child friendly spaces as part of its psychosocial therapy to survivors of Haiyan as well as for the Climate School.
Dakila has multimedia & digital activism workshops since 2011 & trained over 300 advocates on how to use different media tools for campaigns & advocacies. Dakila runs a Climate School that educates youth in vulnerable areas on climate justice and DRRM & trains youth ambassadors against trafficking with MTV Exit.
It has the programs in place, the network & is aligned with Rising Voices’ vision in enabling marginalized sections of society to speak up on their issues & concerns whether online or offline.
What specific challenges do you expect to face when planning and implementing your project?
The unstable internet connection will limit the access of the participants online because Tacloban is still recovering & network signals are still not strong. Mobile smartphones may be used as wi-fi hotspots. Laptops & other equipment may also be a problem. Dakila will be bringing some laptops & participants can share laptops, if needed. However, the strong support of STEFTI as a learning institution with their own facilities & equipment is crucial to sustain the project. Since STEFTI has always expressed its interest in the partnership, we are confident that they will be able to help produce the resources not only needed to sustain the project but also to replicate it in other parts of Tacloban.
How will you measure and evaluate the project’s impact, specifically: your primary participants, the wider regional community, or the global digital community?
The project will be evaluated and measured through the following:
1. Quantity and quality of content made by the participants.
2. Frequency of posting the stories in the media platforms.
3. Replication of workshop to other teachers/leaders in the community.
4. Visibility and popularity of the stories, moving leaders concerned with climate justice and disaster risk reduction management
Ultimately, the impact of the project will be measured on its virality online allowing the public especially advocates and Dakila’s network of personalities and celebrities to amplify the children’s voices online reaching influencers and decision makers to act on their issues and concerns thus making significant changes in the lives of these children offline.
If your project were to be selected as a Rising Voices grantee, what would be the general timeline of project activities in 2014?
June 1-June 30: Training Needs Analysis, Module development and partnership with STEFTI
July 1- August 15: Logistics in preparation for the workshop; Testing of Modules
August 15-17: Workshops with STEFTI
August 18 – 30: Creation of micro site and social media accounts
August – September: Creation of content for site and social media accounts by participants through activities and workshops to students
October – November: Launch of microsite and campaign social media content plan implementation in line with the anniversary of Typhoon Haiyan in November
Detail a specific budget of up to $2,500 USD for operating costs.
Module Development: $100
Logistics, Operations, Communication: $100
Project Manager Honorarium: $150
Trainers’ Fee Honorarium: ($100 x 5 pax) $500
Airfare, Meals & Accommodations $1,000
(Transportation Allowance, Board, and Lodging for 5 Trainers)
Two Day Training Workshop $650
(Food: $200, Materials/Toolkits: $100, Venue and equipment: $200, Miscellaneous/Contingency: $150)
TOTAL $2,500
Besides the microgrant funding, what other support can Rising Voices provide for your project to ensure its success?
Rising Voices can help amplify these stories of the children affected by Haiyan through your digital media platforms. Dakila would also like to work hand in hand with Rising Voices in strengthening its Digital Activism Program (Digibak: Digital Tibak – Tibak is the Filipino slang for Activist) which empowers advocates in amplifying their advocacies and concerns of the sector they are working with through digital media platforms. By connecting with Rising Voices, Dakila aims to serve marginalized sectors in Philippine Society to strengthen their voices online so that they would be included in the conversations for social transformation.
Contact name
Leni Velasco
Organization
Dakila – Philippine Collective for Modern Heroism
Link to Existing Project
Twitter URL
Facebook URL
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