Storytelling for Civil Society: 2nd Call for Applications is Open! - Eastern Partnership Civil Society Facility

We are happy to announce the second call for applications for our Online Course ‘Storytelling for Civil Society’ that will help you better communicate about your projects and engage more people by using storytelling techniques.

Who is the course for?

Civil society leaders / project leaders / communication managers working in civil society organisations from the Eastern Partnership countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine);
Civil society activists and volunteers from the Eastern Partnership countries;
Social start-up leaders and social entrepreneurs, etc. from the Eastern Partnership countries.

What will you achieve by taking the course?

You will better understand why stories are the most powerful communication tool;
You will be able to convert some of your messages into powerful stories;
You will be able to successfully create and shape your own stories;
You will learn how to shift your audience’s perceptions about your messages;
You will know how to broadcast your stories more widely and convincingly.

What will you learn about?

The course is divided into four different modules, taking you step by step from how you can ‘find’ your story to how you can refine it, produce it and broadcast it:

In Module 1 you will learn about the art of telling stories and will figure out what makes a “good story”. With this Module we will help you understand how your civil society organisation can use storytelling to increase its impact, how you can choose a topic for your story, what are the key elements of any successful story and who your target audience is.
Module 2 will help you build your story from the very beginning. You will go through all essential stages of your story building, from planning to dissemination, and will learn which tools you can use for editing and fact-checking depending on the type of a story you choose.
Module 3 will focus on digital instruments for storytelling. You will learn how to choose the right technologies, tools or platform that will help you to produce your digital story and bring it directly to your readers and users.
In Module 4 you will learn how to effectively broadcast your story. We will talk about publishing blogs, broadcasting podcasts, storyboarding, video stories and other interesting things!

Who are the lecturers and tutors?

Our course brings together different experienced professionals and creatives from the region to share their knowledge and skills with you. You will hear from academic experts, professional copywriters, as well as video artists and producers.

	Irina LEU, editor, copywriter, creator from Minsk, Belarus. Irina has eight years of experience working with stories and text, creating advertising ideas, and slogans. She spent the past two years developing educational mobile apps and chatbots. Now she regularly works as trainer for NGOs on how to better present their work, how to say what you really want to say, and finally — how to create empowering stories that captivate and touch.
	Inna KUROCHKINA, documentary film director, producer, interior designer (Tbilisi -Petersburg – Prague) After having graduated from the University of Tbilisi, Inna worked on architectural projects all over the world. In 2010, she moved to Prague where she established the Marina Tsvetajeva Poetry Center and in 2015 she established NEP Prague production company. Since then, she worked on dozens of films, interviews, 3D animation programmes in collaboration with cultural activists, journalists and public figures. In April 2018 Inna produced 13 series documentary film Fake News about Kremlin propaganda.
	Radmila SEGOL, university professor, online learning expert Radmila has a Ph. D. in social communication studies and works as associated professor at the National Technical University of Ukraine “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute”. She is an online education and blended learning expert and has significant experience in story creation for the business and social sectors. Radmila worked as journalist and PR consultant for top-rated Ukrainian newspapers and magazines.
	Andrii PARKHOMENKO, university lecturer, online learning expert Andrii works as lecturer at the National Technical University of Ukraine “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute” and is an online education expert and lead technical expert for the massive open online courses platform “Prometheus”. He has experience and expertise in digital storytelling.

How can you apply?

The course is planned to start on 29 October 2019 and will last until 10 December 2019 (when final assignments will be due). The estimated weekly study time is 4 hours for the core materials. Please make sure that you are available for this period! To apply please fill in this registration form before 13 October 2019. Participants will be selected based on their experience and motivation to participate in the course.

What else do you need to know?

Here are some key facts about our course:

	Format: 100% online: video lectures + tutors support + practical exercises + forum discussions.
	Language: Russian with English subtitles
	Start of the course: 29 October 2019
	Duration: 6-7 weeks
	Weekly study: 4 hours per week (for the core materials)
	Number of groups: 2 groups (this Call is for the second group). Only the first two groups will benefit from tutor support, the possibility to join the Mentors-in-Residence Campaign and alumni opportunities.
	Number of selected students per group: maximum 35.
	Extra benefit: Completion certificate + a chance to join the Mentors-in-Residence Campaign + only for alumni the chance to attend relevant storytelling conferences / events.

And… What is the Mentors-in-Residence Campaign?

All students who complete the Course and pass their final tests will get the opportunity to apply for the Mentors-in-Residence campaign and get support from experienced mentors in visual storytelling that would help you further improve your storytelling skills, visualise your stories and broadcast them.

How will the Mentors-in-Residence Campaign work?

All students who completed the course will be able to apply for the participation in the Mentors-in-Residence Campaign: one organisation in each EaP country will be selected (six organisations in total)
We will identify one international mentor for each organisation based on your specific needs. The Residences will be focused primarily on visual storytelling, i.e. telling a story through the use of visual media: video, illustrations, photography, graphics, audio, cartoons etc.
A mentor will come to your organisation for 5-7 days to work with your team to help you develop and broadcast your specific visual stories (we will cover all costs for the mentor’s travel and stay in your country).