The aim of this project is to promote rapprochement and interaction between university students and young refugees. The two groups are brought into contact with each other through writing sessions. A creative activity allows participants to discuss relevant social themes from their own perspective and experiences in their own words. The mutual interest in writing is used to stimulate integration between the two groups – newcomers and students -, promote the cultural development of both, and also strengthen their social ties.
During the meetings, the group writes poems, articles, columns or short stories, which we publish at the end of the program in a book, magazine or blog format. Several guests will be invited to share their work and inspire the group of new writers. As an outreach activity to broadly involve Dutch society and present the results of the project, Yalla will, together with the participants, promote public presentations in the Marienburg library or LUX during the implementation of the project. With this activity, participants spend even more time together, learn how to plan and run an event, and get feedback from the audience about their work. This is also an opportunity for Dutch society to learn from the perspective of the participants how they want to be portrayed and seen.
To increase the scope of the project, partnerships with festivals, such as the Winter Garden Festival, will be encouraged, where the general public can discover the work and interact with the new writers.