We are delighted to share a blog written by student Loretta, from Sekolah Pelita Bangsa School, who is part of team Garuda delivering a Global Goals project for the 2020-21 GSL Global Goals Competition.
Their project is among over 957 social action projects currently running as part of the GSL movement and we are excited to be supporting them to design and lead positive social change in their community.
The journey has been filled with obstacles, but we pulled through and made it worth it.
Project Summary
This project idea came from when we realized how undervalued literature and arts are in our community. We’ve met people who wanted to write books or draw comics, but most eventually give up on it. Those who aspired to be authors or illustrators would often quit early because they have none of the resources nor experience to properly pursue it. Coupled with the unstable income, these career paths are often looked down upon. Hence many of these dreamers fail to achieve their goal.
We want to help and guide these people in pursuing this path. We planned to start the program with 3 sessions that would each span about a month. In this program, we would help participants create their own work with the guiding theme of ‘Make a Wish’. There are 3 categories in our program which are poems, short stories and drawings. Each participant would choose a category and with an assigned mentor, they would be assisted along with several other participants on creating their own works.
At the end of each session, we would compile all the works into a book to be sold as a collection. The money earned from the book will be distributed to the participants in hope to aid their financial condition. This program is also a way to spread awareness towards literature and arts in our local community.
The Journey
Throughout this program we’ve learned and developed multiple skills such as communication, time management and discipline. In this program, we came across many different types of people and it requires us to adjust our approach to accommodate them properly. Some participants are very enthusiastic but there are also those who require more time and encouragement to open up and participate in discussions. Through these interactions, we’ve developed our communication skills with the participants and our own group members.
We’ve also set a timeline which keeps us on track with deadlines. This is where everyone’s time management skills are put to the test. Each of our roles are a vital part of the project and if one of us is late for deadlines, it can easily cause a domino effect that slows the entire project. Therefore we must ensure that all of us perform our roles and duties on time.
Not just the participants, us mentors have also deepened our understanding of poems, stories and drawings throughout the teaching process. Evaluating and providing advice on how students can improve their work has improved our critical thinking as well. Gaining these knowledge enables us to provide a better learning experience for the participants in future sessions. Undeniably, there are many hurdles that we have to cross in this project. One of these obstacles are contacting the school and local communities to gather participants. Thankfully our social media promotions were successful which is why we used this as our main method on finding participants. To market the book, we have tried to promote it through our school and local communities but it was ineffective. In the end, we have decided to use social media as our main method of promoting the book in hopes of it succeeding.
Aside from the major obstacles above, we’ve also experienced a few personal challenges. Our members in the design section spent quite a while more than expected to compose the book’s cover and decorations to make it as good as possible. Several others were having a hard time organizing topics to teach the participants. But with some problem solving and much determination, we were able to solve them.
The Next Chapter
It would be great if many more people would create projects with a similar goal to ours! They would be able to spread much more awareness towards literature and arts, especially in countries that do not put much importance on it. Take Indonesia for example, the bookstores are flooded with translations of foreign works. We are too absorbed in consumer culture while those who aspire to create are ignored and discouraged when we should be nurturing them and encouraging their efforts. By giving them our focus and attention, they would have a greater chance in achieving their dreams and fulfilling their wish. Just like our theme ‘Make a Wish’, make your wish and take action!
