Thank you to everyone who submitted as part of this special call for stories and big congratulations to all the winners! Learn more about them and their stories here:
Notice: we have extended the competition's deadline to the 30th of June!
In observance of the twin Diversity Days 2021 (World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, 21st of May; International Day for Biological Diversity, 22nd of May), our #YourStoryOurFuture Storytelling Campaign is running a month-long special call-out for compelling and strong stories from youth that bridge society, culture and nature.
Although bringing together the social and the ecological is already at the heart of our Storytelling Programme, we want to use this specific period of time to center and support global social movements and their remembrance, mobilisations and awareness campaigns happening across May & June, including World Refugee Day, LGBTQI+ Pride Month, and the anniversary of the George Floyd anti-racism protests.
At Y4N we also recognise that such bridge is not only timely, but growingly urgent. The world is currently grappling with an array of cultural shifts and social inequalities exacerbated by the ongoing pandemic and by the business-as-usual practices which are also behind the climate and ecological crises. As a global youth group from a variety of backgrounds and walks of life, it is clear for us that there is no climate or environmental justice without (diverse forms of) social justice.
All in all, for this special call-out we want to amplify and support biodiversity stories that deal with critical diversity, equality, and inclusion issues, especially justice-oriented messages, actions and solutions led by communities affected by them. All participants whose stories are approved will benefit from having their stories showcased on our digital Story-map and being members of our Global Storytelling Community. In addition, among all approved stories that are submitted between now and June the 30th at 23:59 PST, six lucky individuals/groups will win a multi-choice prize worth up to US$75 (individuals) or US$250 (groups).
There will be one prize for each winner under each of the following themes:
MOBILITY: Migration, displacement, and cultural exchanges;
LANGUAGE: Multilingualism, indigenous languages, and language diversity;
FAITH: Religion, interfaith work & spiritualism;
ETHNICITY & CULTURE: Ethnic/cultural diversity, traditions and minority rights;
RACE: Racial justice, equal civil rights and anti-racism;
SEXUALITY: LGBTQI+ rights, acceptance and mobilisation;
More details on prizes and benefits are available below.
Eligibility
In terms of criteria and requirements, participants must first of all adhere to our general Storytelling Campaign Submission Guidelines. The guidelines are also available in Español, Français, Kiswahili, Português and العربية. We strongly advise you read through the guidelines & PDF form carefully, as you risk being asked to re-submit the story until it meets our criteria. Only approved stories by the deadline set will be considered for the competition.
In addition, those wanting to qualify for one of the prizes available must follow the special call-out's rules, including:
Stories can be in a variety of formats, including text, audio, image and/or video submissions.
Stories can be in any approved language (check the guidelines to know more) and from any region and country across the world.
Stories must be submitted between the 21st of May and the 30th of June at 23:59 PST, and approved by the 28th of June. Approval is based on a review process to ensure the submission meets our guidelines.
Only one story per individual/group will be accepted for this competition.
Stories must be original and personal, authored by either:
A young individual between 18 and 30 years old*. For those under 18 years old, parental consent is required for the submission to be approved.
OR
A group initiative that is led by youth, or that it is made up of at least 50% youth.
*As a youth-led and youth-centred organisation, Youth4Nature's definition of "youth" is currently under review, following queries and concerns about our current age range. Youth4Nature was inspired by the need to address the particular injustices and inequalities that youth experience upon entering the climate-nature decision-making architecture.
Originally, our set age range for "youth" was based on the target youth group for the UN Climate Summit of 2019, the event that sparked Y4N's birth. Nevertheless, in certain pre-discussed cases, we might approve stories from people slightly above the age range (<5-10 years), provided that their story reflects their recent experiences as young people and/or are centered on youth empowerment & intergenerational equity. Do get in touch with Emily, our Storytelling Director, for more information at emily@youth4nature.org.
Stories must be looking for personal narratives that explore the links between biodiversity and socio-cultural issues, answering or showcasing the following question:
"What's the relationship between social issues, cultural diversity and biological diversity? Why and how are each important to/impactful on the other?".
Stories must include actions, reflections or art on biodiversity which are FOCUSED or / and (preferably) LED by individuals and communities with lived or advocate experience on contemporary social and cultural issues under the six prize categories. Below are examples of topics,, stories could address:
Refugees building an organic community garden to green an urban space.
Heritage as the nexus between the preservation of language and the preservation of biodiversity.
Interfaith-group-led advocacy campaigns to conserve biodiverse ecosystems.
Cultural traditions and the practices of a particular ethnic group to protect and restore natural ecosystems.
Raising awareness of how areas with historically marginalised groups have less access to green spaces in countries with historical racial inequalities.
The role of LGBTQI+ solidarity and mobilisation in guarding and promoting biodiversity.
BENEFITS OF PARTICIPATION
Everyone whose submission gets approved for our umbrella YSOF campaign will:
Get their story uploaded to our digital multimedia Story-map, with the potential to be featured on our socials, newsletter and website.
Become a member (for individuals)/partner (for organisations) of Y4N's brand-new Global Storytelling Community: a sustainable global community to connect storytellers with each other and stay up-to-date with them, promoting impact-driven opportunities, capacity-building resources, co-produced activities and collaborative mobilisations.
Be on the pool of potential first grantees for our upcoming pilot micro-grants programme, which will exclusively offer Storytelling Community members & prospective storytellers seed and growth funding for youth-led/intergenerational climate-nature projects on-the-ground, coupled with mentoring and training opportunities.
PRIZES
A total of six winner stories will be chosen at random among approved submissions for each category that meet our eligibility criteria, adhere to the call-out's themes, and follow our general submission guidelines. Regarding prizes:
For individuals, the winner will be entitled to a single prize of their choice worth up to US$75 USD, including one of the following options
Costs of a creative artistic software/editorial programme that would help share their story and biodiversity work with a wider audience.
Grant-based contribution to on-the-ground initiative or projects led by social justice and cultural groups seeking to create/extend their environmental programmes, with an emphasis on empowering, mobilising and capacity-building endeavours.
Expenses of educational and capacity-building materials on diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) issues in the biodiversity space. Examples include courses, books, learning materials, equipment, journal subscriptions, etc.
For groups, the winner will be entitled to a single prize of their choice worth up to US$250, including one of the following options:
Costs of storytelling-related equipment and resources that would help amplify the group's story and biodiversity work.
Grant-based contribution to the group's on-the-ground biodiversity initiative, with an emphasis on social justice, minority/marginalised groups empowerment and DEI capacity-building endeavours.
Expenses of shareable educational and capacity-building materials on environmental justice, and on DEI/social issues. Examples include courses, learning materials, books, equipment, journal subscriptions, etc
SO…
We are inviting you to submit your story to the YSOF campaign! You have an important story to tell about the urgency of the climate and ecological crises, the community-centred action you are leading, and the solution-oriented work you are pursuing. We cannot wait to help amplify your voices, and engage with your work!
Remember to use the hashtags #YourStoryOurFuture and #Y4NStorytelling on social media so we can follow and amplify your work. You can tag us too, we are @Y4Nature on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Youth4Nature on LinkedIn!
As always, reach out if you have further questions! You can contact Emily, our Storytelling Director, at storytelling@youth4nature.org.
TERMS & CONDITIONS OF COMPETITION
6 individuals and/or group winners will be chosen at random among all those who participate before the the 30th of June at 23:59 PST. Terms and Conditions: IWD Call-out (“CONTEST”) ADMINISTERED BY YOUTH4NATURE (“ADMINISTRATOR”). CONTEST BEGINS ON 21th May AND ENDS ON the 30th of June at 23:59 PST (“CONTEST PERIOD”). NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. By participating, entrants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of the Administrator. The final winners will be chosen at random. The odds of winning will depend on the number of entries received. The winners will be sent an email and will have forty-eight hours to respond. If no response is received within forty-eight hours, another winner will be chosen. The winners will also need to be able to receive the prize through reimbursement via Paypal, wire transfer or TransferWise, and/or accept a voucher/gift card where applicable. In some cases, upfront payment might be possible. The winners name and story details will be disclosed on our social media pages. Please contact emily@youth4nature.org for any questions.