After 7 years of dedicated work that has created countless agents of change, we are celebrating the youth leaders involved Networks4Change with an Imbizo Ceremony on July 15, 2021!
The Imbizo was originally planned as a transnational gathering to take place in Durban, South Africa in the summer 2020. This was an opportunity to gather youth from sites across Canada and South Africa. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was postponed and adapted in line with global and local challenges.
In 2021, we are finally hosting this long awaited event! With a virtual format, the Imbizo aims to celebrate the youth of the project, recognize their achievements, personal journeys and powerful growth. The Imbizo is also an opportunity to reflect on all that was achieved throughout the years of work.
For the youth, it is an opportunity to connect virtually, share their reflections and creations with their colleagues from other sites, continents and cultures. For researchers and site leaders it is a moment to let the youth leaders know how proud they are of them and an opportunity to reflect on all that has been accomplished throughout their work.
As part of the celebratory activities, we are also launching the first collaborative book with both the works of youth in South Africa and Canada together! The publication is also supported by the launch of our first podcast!
Imbizo Event Report
Read all about the 2021 Imbizo event; who was there, what was shared and all that was celebrated!
Watch the videos and access the media shared at the Imbizo!
We explored different ways to make ‘what happened’ at the Imbizo accessible to those that couldn’t attend and create recaps for those who were able to take part. Graphic notes were created by Tatianna Sitounis, using what was shared and shown during the Imbizo. These notes were thoughtfully created with our youth participants in mind.
Circle Back: Stories of Reflection, Connection and Transformation
Circle Back: Stories of Reflection, Connection and Transformation is an empowering book that has been created through the combination of works from Indigenous youth leaders at the sites located in both South Africa and communities in Canada.
Driven by 3 youth editors; Hannah Battiste (Break the Silence, Be The Change, Eskasoni, NS, Canada), Andraya Daniels (Young Indigenous Women’s Utopia, Treaty 6, The Traditional Homeland of the Métis, Saskatoon, SK, Canada), and Bongiwe Maome (Girls Leading Change, Gqeberha, Eastern Cape, South Africa), this publication includes beautiful artwork, poetry and prose addressing the main theme of transformation.
The book is split between three main sections; transformation, reflection of personal spaces, and connections. These themes are portrayed through the tellings of the girls and young women in South Africa and Canada, as well as their artwork and own experiences.
Transformation is constantly occurring, yet these past few years have brought more change and more transformation than ever, not only on the personal level, but in the form of social change. Through these stories we are able to hear the powerful youth voices, connect to their experiences, and understand the transformations they have been through and that they hope to see in the future.
Battiste, H., Daniels, A. & Maome, B. (EDS.) (2021). Circle Back: Stories of Reflection, Connection and Transformation. Participatory Cultures Lab, McGill University. ISBN 978-1-77247-027-7
Circle Back Podcast
This podcast provides an accessible platform for N4C youth to share writings and artwork that they have published within Circle Back: Stories of Reflection, Connection and Transformation.
The podcast includes the recordings of girls reading their pieces and describing the art they have created in relation to the theme of the book; Transformation. This notion of transformation varies from personal agency and social change, to how they have been affected by COVID-19, both directly and indirectly, as well as the transformations they hope to see in the future.
Hear the first episode and meet the 3 young editors that made Circle Back possible: Introduction
Upcoming episodes:
- Transformation
- Reflecting on personal spaces
- Connection