We aim to organize an interdisciplinary poetry slam and storytelling event in which REBO students can explore the UU strategic themes of digitalisation, inclusion, and sustainability through these creative formats. The event will be preceded by a number of workshops in which we teach students to write poetry and stories based on the research insights around the strategic themes in order to develop their empathic abilities.

Background information

The current generation of students is confronted with many crises. This not only places great emotional strain on them, it also begs the question how they relate to important issues that shape these crises and how they can contribute to a better future. The envisioned project offers space for students to grapple with the emotional turmoil that the current socio-ecological crises bring forth and exchange thoughts and feelings around these issues. The use of creative formats (poetry and storytelling) also provides a springboard for imagining a different future together. The planned slam poetry and storytelling event aims to connect participants in the project with a wider, interdisciplinary audience of students and other interested parties, positioning those involved as potential change makers of the future.

Aims

With this project we aim to literally and figuratively give this empathic involvement a stage as part of the exchange around the strategic themes, and open
up space to imagine a different future together.

Project description

September 2024 – October 2024:

• Booking locations and setting dates for workshops and event
• Contacting spoken word/slam poetry expert
• Designing workshops on poetry, storytelling, and performance
• Communication workshops and event (lay-out, details, etc.). Create a short clip about the workshops and the event that can be shared on the socials of student associations. This clip will also explicitly address those students who don’t have any experience with creative writing and do not consider
  themselves “poets” or “storytellers”.
• Submission participants
• Contacting participants

November 2024 – March 2025:

• Preparing workshops
• Two workshops on (research) poetry with participants
• Two workshops on (research) storytelling with participants
• Two workshops on spoken word and poetry slam with participants

April 2025 – May 2025:

• Organizing the event (programme, communication, decoration)
• Live event: Presentation of stories, slam poetry, spoken word
• Communication after the event

Results

• Create space for students to think, feel, and imagine how they (want to) engage with sustainability, inclusion, and digitalization in society
• Offer tools for students to translate and perform (their) research on sustainability, inclusion, and digitalization through poetry and storytelling.
• Develop alternative writing and presentation skills in order for students to invite a wide public to engage with (research on) sustainability, inclusion and digitalization.
• Develop empathic abilities of students to approach grand challenges by making space for the expression and sharing of emotions/affect related to the current socio-ecological crises
• Invite students to imagine a better future in relation to sustainability, inclusion, and digitalization
• Materialize the empathic involvement of students with these themes through the event and a collection of the poetry and stories created that can be
  shared
• Write a research article that reflects on the use of arts-based methods in education