Stichting yEUth is excited to announce its participation in the Erasmus+ Training Course “PhotoVoice and Visual Storytelling for Youth Workers,” hosted by Asociación Socio-Cultural Verdesur Alcalá in Alcalá la Real, Spain, from February 1 to 8, 2025. This training aims to empower youth workers with innovative tools for advocacy, inclusion, and community engagement through photography and storytelling.

Harnessing the Power of Visual Storytelling

The program aims to equip participants with practical skills in PhotoVoice methodology and visual storytelling, providing powerful tools to highlight social issues and amplify the voices of underrepresented communities. Through workshops, creative exercises, and collaborative projects, participants learned to use PhotoVoice to promote community issues through photography, develop compelling visual stories to drive social change, empower young people to express their experiences through creative media, and promote inclusion and participation among youth with fewer opportunities.

Participant Reflections

Julia, one of the participants of the Dutch team, shared:

“During the project we learned about raising awareness on societal topics through photography. At the end, we made our own exhibition that was visited by the locals. It was a fun experience to be in a creative process with a diverse group of European youth!”

Maša, another Dutch participant, shared this: 

“This training course truly enriched my understanding of photography – not only in terms of technical skills and editing but also through exploring photovoice as a powerful visual advocacy tool. Working in multicultural groups during workshops and fieldwork was a great experience, and seeing it all come together in a final photo exhibition at the Youth Centre in Alcalá was incredibly rewarding. Beyond that, I had the chance to connect with amazing people, immerse myself in the beauty of Andalusia, and create unforgettable memories. I left Spain feeling grateful and with a heart full of great experiences.”

A Gateway to Inclusion and Partnership Building

This project directly supports the European Youth Goal “Space and Participation for All”, by enabling young people to tell their stories while increasing the capacity of youth workers to facilitate such initiatives. Additionally, it offers a valuable space to network, exchange experiences, and forge new international partnerships for future youth projects.

Gratitude and Looking Forward

We extend our sincere thanks to Asociación Socio-Cultural Verdesur Alcalá for hosting this inspiring training. Stichting yEUth is proud to be part of this initiative and looks forward to integrating these new tools into our local projects to further empower the voices of young people.

Stay tuned for updates from Spain!