theTree-zineIssue No.6 - September-October 2012

Why does a story deserve an online festival?

How do we make it happen?

Krista Orama and her empowering experience with the African Movement on Working Children and Youth.

Welcome to issue #6 of the Tree-zine!

Choose a creative response to l ife! is the slogan of our newest innovation: an

international onl ine festival. Read about The Song of the Tree FESTIVAL 201 3 and how

you can be part of it. Page 4.

Project manager Thomas Weckström explains the practical side of the festival on page 5.

Krista Orama previously worked as Coordinator of Child and Youth Participation at Plan

Finland. On page 6-7 she shares an empowering experience from when she worked

together with the African Movement on Working Children and Youth.

And on page 8 I share why The Song of the Tree story is relevant and deserves a global

initiative and an international festival.

Enjoy!

Camil la Hellberg

Artistic Director

The Tree-zine shares content related to the international initiative and online festival

based on the story The Song of the Tree. The story is used as a starting point to explore

to what extent children around the world can improve the quality of their l ives. Artists,

educators and creative individuals are invited to join and make a difference with and for

children in their community. Go to www.thesongofthetree.com to learn more.

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Choose a creative response to l ife

Welcome to issue #6 of the Tree-zine!

Choose a creative response to l ife! is the slogan of our newest innovation: an

international onl ine festival. Read about The Song of the Tree FESTIVAL 201 3 and how

you can be part of it. Page 4.

Project manager Thomas Weckström explains the practical side of the festival on page 5.

Krista Orama previously worked as Coordinator of Child and Youth Participation at Plan

Finland. On page 6-7 she shares an empowering experience from when she worked

together with the African Movement on Working Children and Youth.

And on page 8 I share why The Song of the Tree story is relevant and deserves a global

initiative and an international festival.

Enjoy!

Camil la Hellberg

Artistic Director

The Tree-zine shares content related to the international initiative and online festival

based on the story The Song of the Tree. The story is used as a starting point to explore

to what extent children around the world can improve the quality of their l ives. Artists,

educators and creative individuals are invited to join and make a difference with and for

children in their community. Go to www.thesongofthetree.com to learn more.

Share your current reality and the visions for the future you want.Tell the story The Song of the Tree through your unique lens of life.Your ideas might change someone´s life for the better.

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1. Download the script2. Make your performance3. Get it fi lmed (we wil l help you do that)4. Invite everyone you know to watch itonl ine during the festival in 201 3.The only things they have to do is toregister to the site, the festival is free!

5. Use the online discussion forums toshare your thoughts and make newfriends.

After the festival you have these options:

1. your fi lm can continue to exist on thesite and be viewed for free by anyone

2. your fi lm can be viewed against a fee tobenefit a local chi ldren´s organisation

3. your fi lm can be viewed only by thosewho have made their own version of thestory

4. you can stop showing your fi lm

Go to www.thesongofthetree.com to learn more. Let us know if you want tocreate a performance and participate with it by sending and email to festival@thesongofthetree.com. We wil l be in touch and help you with the first steps.

The script we provide and the idea of the

story making a difference, only provide the

frame for an event. But it is your participation

that makes it a festival. To make it possible for

you all to be involved online, participating with

each other, we need a functional platform. As

you read this, preparations are taking place.

Everything shall be ready for the festival in

201 3.

After a meeting with Save the Children Finland in

June 201 2, the base for the technical structure was

formed. I t wil l be developed further to ensure a

platform that is stable, rel iable and easy to use. I t

wil l become a window to the world for the

participating groups. Filmed performances form all

over the world, based on the original script, wil l be

screened from the platform by participators around

the globe. One story told in unique ways, shared

with each other.

To build a platform like this is an interesting

challenge. As the project manager I have the

privi lege to fol low how all of this is coming together,

but I also have the responsibi l ity to see that it wil l

be done in the best possible way. Another

challenge is to make sure that the the fi lmed

material is done professionally. To ensure this and

to make the fi lming possible almost everywhere in

the world, we collaborate with local media schools.

We provide the media schools opportunities to

have meaningful multi-camera production

exercises. We also offer a channel for them to

compare their own work with other media schools

and with students around the world, to discuss

online about different implementations and make

professional contacts. This is something that I

personally would have wanted to engage in when I

was studying media. A project where I learn

professional ski l ls while I engage in something

meaningful in dialogue with others.

Late 201 3 may sti l l be far away, but this festival is

not done over night. I f you are either a

representative for a media school, a representative

for a group, an educator, an artist or just someone

who got inspired and wants to to take part in the

first international onl ine The Song of the Tree

FESTIVAL, take action now! Contact us at

festival@thesongofthetree.com and let us know

about yourself.

Thomas Weckström

Project Manager

thomas@thesongofthetree.com

Film and media schools can directlycontact us by dropping a line tomediaschools@thesongofthetree.com

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Share your current reality and the visions for the future you want.Tell the story The Song of the Tree through your unique lens of life.Your ideas might change someone´s life for the better.

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A couple of years ago I had the chance to work

together with the African Movement for

Working Children and Youth (AMWCY).

The movement was born in 1 994 in the Ivory

Coast. Children and youth who were working as

mechanics, housemaids, vendors or such, felt that

their rights were not adequately protected. While

the efforts on promoting children’s rights focused

on education or child protection in more general

terms, the labour movement focused on adults;

working children were effectively trapped in a

protection gap in between. So, a bunch of them sat

down and defined twelve rights that were to

constitute the basis for their struggle against

exploitation and the worst forms of child labour:

The right to learn how to read and write;

The right to be taught a trade;

The right to remain in their vi l lage (no migration);

The right to rest when sick;

The right to work in a safe environment;

The right to l ight and l imited work;

The right to be listened to;

The right to leisure;

The right to healthcare;

The right to self-expression and to get organised;

The right to legal aid

The Song of the Tree FESTIVAL offers a

chance for children to give a voice to what

they want us to know about their l ife. There

are many different experiences around the

world that deserve to be shared and Krista

Orama, who previously worked as Coordinator

of Child and Youth Participation at Plan

Finland, shares an empowering experience

from when she worked together with the

African Movement on Working Children and

Youth. Krista has continued to work in the field

of human rights and contributes to the Tree-

zine regularly.

The essence ofyouth partnership

Go to www.thesongofthetree.com to learn more. Let us know if you want tocreate a performance and participate with it by sending and email to festival@thesongofthetree.com. We wil l be in touch and help you with the first steps.

The movement grew with impressive speed, first in

West Africa and later to other parts of the continent.

Today, it has more than 1 00.000 registered

members from 22 countries. In its current form, the

AMWCY aims to improve the rights and working

conditions of working children across Africa,

providing counsell ing and training and running

campaigns at the local, national and regional levels.

The force of the movement l ies first and foremost in

grass-root, community based activism – the

AMWCY has remained to be a child-led movement

of working children and youth for working children

and youth. In my view, an absolutely fantastic

example of how ownership of a cause is exactly

where it is supposed to be: in the hands of the

concerned people themselves.

As can be guessed, a movement led by children

and promoting the labour rights of children finds

itself in a position in which it constantly has to

defend its position. As an example, the International

Labour Organisation (ILO) cooperates with the

AMWCY mostly in relation to questions of child

migration – not as an organisation with expertise on

the question of working children as such. At

international forums, the movement often lacks

recognition, often due to the tendency to question

the legitimacy of uninvited political engagement by

children and youth.

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European governments are hesitant to support the

movement with the motivation that they do not want

to support work of children: “chi ldren should play

and go to school, not work”. My advise to these

governments would be to l isten to what the

movement actual ly has to say.

Because what the critics fai l to see is that the

movement’s objectives are ful ly in l ine with the UN

Convention on the Rights of the Child, which

recognises in article 32 the right of the child to be

protected from economic exploitation and from

performing any work that is l ikely to be hazardous

or to interfere with the child's education, or to be

harmful to the child's health or development. The

Convention further establishes the obligation on

States parties to provide appropriate regulation of

the hours and conditions of employment.

In this very spirit, proud of being able to contribute

to their societies, the members of the AMWCY call

for l ight, age-appropriate work with reasonable

working hours and salary, and for the possibi l ity to

go to school alongside work. And they achieve

results. Indeed, in 201 0, 84.3% of the working

children and youth participating in the movement

responded that since they are got involved in the

AMWCY, they work fewer hours and less hard.

One of the key objectives of the AMWCY is to

establish partnerships with other civi l society actors

to strengthen solidarity and gain the respect of both

local populations and governments. In doing this,

the movement seeks to partner with other children

and youth around the world – similar movements in

Asia and Latin America, but also other kinds of

organisations.

Plan Finland’s Children’s Board is a long-term

partner of the movement. Three members of the

AMWCY visited Finland in 2009. Some months

after the visit, the Children’s Board had the chance

to meet the Finnish president of that time, Tarja

Halonen. In its speech to Ms. Halonen, the

Children’s Board said that cooperation between

youth groups is important as it facil itates the

possibi l ities of children and youth around the world

to be heard. The Children’s Board felt that

cooperation with the movement gave valuable new

views on the everyday life of children in developing

countries and perspective to one’s own life.

Prior to the visit of the AMWCY members in

Finland, most adults who participated in the

organisation of this encounter had little hope for

any good interaction between these two groups.

How on earth would mainstream school-going

Finnish teenagers understand the reality of working

children and youth whose reality and struggles look

quite different?

Answer: quite well . The Finnish youth had no

problem understanding what delegates at most

international conferences do not: for the African

children and youth, to work is to be taken seriously.

The core message of the AMWCY is similar to that

of most young persons in most parts of the world:

they want to be heard, l istened to, taken into

account. They want us to realise that they are the

experts of their own realities.

"The core message of the AMWCY is similar to that ofmost young persons in most parts of the world: theywant to be heard, listened to, taken into account."

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One story. A global initiative. And now an

online international festival being planned

for 201 3. Why? Why are we focusing on this

particular story? I was asking myself this very

question when The Song of the Tree story

begun to take form many years ago. What is

so special about this story?

The main goal when I set out on what became

the start of The Song of the Tree for me, was

to find out what we humans share on the

deepest level and how we can connect with

each other from that place. The initial frame of

the story was created during a collaboration

between artists from Finland and South Africa

who came together to figure out what common

story we could tel l . What do we share? In the

process I was forced to look at how I was

defining myself and others, what beliefs were

governing my thought patters and thus the

possibi l ities I saw, the actions I was taking and

the results I was getting. The story kept on

asking me to re-think things I thought I had

"figured out" and be open to new ways of

looking at l ife. I was longing for answers and I

had to open up to them, each day in new ways.

The story was offering a frame for my quest.

The wil l ingness in me to open up to myself and

others was the pace of the story revealing itself

to me. I found that the story had a life and a

mission of its own and that the questions it was

bringing forth were relevant to others too. We

all recognize a longing to be seen, heard and

respected - as we are.

This is why we are focusing on this particular

story and why it feels relevant to create a

global initiative around it and an international

onl ine festival. Various interpretations of the

story through the lens of different people open

up a channel for communication and the

universal aspects create a base for connection

and understanding. The story discusses the

human experience, represented by the

characters Ella, Zongi, Esther, Gogo and

Lenny. El la is a child who thinks that she is a

dog. She is longing to be a real chi ld, to

connect with others and to enjoy l ife. Zongi and

Esther offer one extreme approach to l ife

through persistent resistance, confl ict seeking

and blame. Gogo and Lenny offer the other

extreme of the spectrum in their trust and

allowing of l ife to take shape in the direction of

one´s heart, through infinite creativity, Both

experiences remind Ella about who she truly is

and about the possibi l ities beyond her current

reality. How she can live the l ife she came here

to l ive and use her creativity to change her

reality. For the better. All of us seem to be

faced with these circumstances. Life as a

continuous journey, contrast as a way to define

what we prefer, our emotions as the guidel ine

to being in l ine with our heart´s desire and

creativity as the way to bring our desires into

reality in ways that inspires ourselves and

benefits others. That is why we want to see

what this universal process in the form of a

story looks l ike, when expressed in different

parts of the world. I t feels relevant and it offers

a choice to respond to l ife in a creative way.

Starting from where you are.

Camil la Hellberg

Artistic director

camil la@thesongofthetree.com

You can read my blog at www.thetreeinme.wordpress.comwhere I share insights and lessons learned from my journeywith The Song of the Tree.

Why This Story?

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This is an excerpt from The Song of the Tree story. El la is a child who thinks that she is a dog.

One dark night after she has been deeply hurt by Esther and Zongi, she meets two magical

friends, Gogo and Lenny. They ask her what she would want most in l ife and that they can help

her get it. Whatever it is. El la says that she wants to be a real chi ld but that it is impossible

because she is a dog. Gogo and Lenny try to convince Ella that she is a real chi ld already, but

Ella´s experience confirms that she is a dog. She doesn´t bel ieve them. Unti l they put on an

experiment:

Gogo: Let’s do an experiment.Ella: OkGogo: Let’s imagine that Lenny here is kitten, a tiny cute kitten.Ella: Ok…Gogo: And now, let’s say that someone comes and kicks the tiny cute kitten, really hard.Gogo kicks Lenny and he cries l ike a hurt l ittle kitten. Gogo turns to Ella.

Gogo: Does that kick turn this kitten into a ball?Ella: No, of course not, it’s still a kitten.Gogo: Right. So, if Esther and Zongi treat you like a dog, does it prove that you

actually are one?Ella has to think for a moment.

Ella: Well...no.Gogo: Right. So how do you want to be treated?© Camil la Hellberg and Linda Rajal in

From here on Ella´s journey to discover who she truly is takes a new turn and before the sun

comes up the next morning everything wil l change. Read the whole story by registering to

www.thesongofthetree.com for free. Realize it as a theatre play in your community and be part of

The Song of the Tree online Festival 201 3.

Next issue

The next issue wil l be out on November 1 5, 201 2.

You can fol low us on Facebook at

http: //www.facebook.com/TheSongOfTheTreeInitiative unti l then.

I f you l ike reading blogs, artistic director Camil la Hellberg is sharing insights and

lessons learned from her journey with the story The Song of the Tree in her new

blog www.thetreeinme.wordpress.com.

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This was our sixth issue of the Tree-zine and we would highly appreciate your feedback. Please

send your comments to info@thesongofthetree.com. We are interested in knowing what worked

for you and what we could do better. Thank you for your participation!

Publisher:Nordpic Production Ltd/Thomas Weckström

Editor:Camil la Hellberg

Layout:Thomas Weckström/Nordpic Production Ltd

Cover Design & background graphics:Enchant Creative / Simbirirai Solomon Maramba, Tafadzwa Tarumbwa

Photographs by:Thomas Weckström, Leif Weckström, Krista Orama.

CopyrightAll articles, photographs and il lustrations belong to the originators.

Everything else is © 201 2 Nordpic Production Ltd.

Contactinfo@thesongofthetree.com

Thomas Weckström Camil la Hellberg Kenny Gibe Dorothy Meck Minna Pentti lä

Project Manager Artistic Director Head of TSTI in SA Head of TSTI in Head of TSTI in

Zimbabwe USA

Emails to the team: firstname@thesongofthetree.com

You can read more about TSTI and the script we are inviting participants worldwide to take part

in by going to www.thesongofthetree.com.

Issue # 7 wil l be out on November 1 5, 201 2. We wil l see you then!

Lots of love,

The TSTI Team

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The Song of the Tree

2 0 1 3F E S T I V A LShare your real i ty and the vis ions for the future you want to l ive. Tel l the story The Song of the Tree through your unique lens of l i fe. Your idea might change someone’s l i fe for the better.

The fest ival i s held onl ine and we encourage part icipants to create local l ive events in their communit ies dur ing the fest ival week.

J o i n www . t h e s o n g o f t h e t r ee . c om

t o f i n d o u t mo r e !