Abstract:

The mission of Outside the Lens is to empower youth to use digital media to create change within themselves, their community and their world. Our innovative program engages disconnected youth, encourages them to tell their stories, and teaches them that participation in their community’s future makes a difference. We use cameras and digital media, along with a proven educational strategy, that allows youth to think creatively, engage in issues that are important to them, and advocate for social change. Outside the Lens is dedicated to a future where all youth will have the access and education necessary to understand, evaluate and, most importantly, create media. Through photography, videography and digital media, youth become engaged learners and active participants in the classroom, their communities and ultimately the world.

Since its inception, Outside the Lens has leveraged digital technology as a tool for development and literacy advancement through our work with some of the world's most vulnerable communities. One of our organization's most recognized initiatives, Cameras Crossing Cultures, places cameras in the hands of youth so that they are able to share their stories and amplify their voices. This project has been implemented successfully in locations as diverse as Thailand, a refugee camp in Jordan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and migrant communities along the San Diego-Mexico border.

A current iteration this project is taking place on the northern coast of Colombia, in collaboration with the United States Peace Corps. Partners for the last 5 years through the work of current and former volunteers in Colombia and Namibia, Outside the Lens and Peace Corps are now taking steps to formalize their partnership by institutionalizing initiatives through the agency's ICT's for Development (ICT4D) Committee.

This presentation will explore our first ICT4D collaboration that launched in the summer of 2017. FOTO Colombia, an arts exchange that links North American and Colombian youth, considers the timely topics of peacebuilding and reconciliation in the country's current context. By leveraging the power of imagery that they create, youth reflect on the role they have in the peace process, the presence of peacebuilders already at work in their communities, and the dimensions of reconciliation at the macro level.

The work of our student-artists has already garnered media attention, and has earned our students the chance to exhibit at ART San Diego, the city's most important contemporary art event. Additionally, student-artists from both countries reported increased self-perceptions around the potential to be an agent of change and the ability to play a positive role in conflict resolution.

Collaboration between Outside the Lens and Peace Corps continues as plans for the next delegation (Summer '18) actualize and a strategic plan reflecting the mission of the ICT4D Committee is developed.

Keywords:

Joint Education Projects, Impact of Education on Development, New Experiences for International Cooperation, New Projects and Innovations.