YMCA Digital has successfully completed a seven-week pilot for an innovative environmental awareness and digital media project called ‘We are the Change’.
The project uses digital, blogging and videography platforms to empower and educate young people on a variety of environmental issues, as well as teaching them practical ethical skills.
Working alongside Green Scene and The Newark Academy, the ambition of the Newark-based pilot was to gather content and create consolation opportunities for a larger bid proposal, which was submitted in November 2019.
The full project will focus on young people in Nottingham City and County, working alongside specialists within horticulture, environmental, wellbeing and recycling sectors. Alongside specialists, participants will explore pressing environmental and social issues within their local area.
“The project will be fuelled by creativity, offering digital media training in content creation, blogging, photography and video. It will be led by the participants, they will be creating and designing a project around their local areas and their interests,’ said Ben Felstead, Lead Youth Worker at YMCA Digital, “It’s a fantastic opportunity to get young people involved in digital media while also teaching them valuable life skills and raising their awareness of current environmental issues.”
The pilot project saw young people learning about gardening and healthy eating, as they grew, harvested and sold their own produce at a local food market. This gave the participants experience of running their own mini-business, designing their own brand name, logo, and stall decorations. Produce on sale included radish, cress, peas, herbs, and seedling pots of tomatoes, cucumbers, pumpkins, beans and peas that buyers could continue to grow at home.
The full project will launch initiatives like this across Nottingham city and county, culminating in a celebration event which will feature all the environmental and digital works on display in a gallery setting.
To find out more about the project or to get involved, please email the YMCA Digital team at studio@nottsymca.org.