PASO Colombia Wins Grant to Create the Rural Alternative School of Communication in Mutatá, Antioquia

PASO Colombia has been awarded a USD $9,600 “Imagining Our Image” grant from the 2020 National Stimulus Program of the Ministry of Culture for its winning project, "Rural Alternative School of Liquid Communication in Mutatá, Antioquia."  This  project will train local communication teams made up of ex-combatants and local community members to support the marketing and sales  of agricultural products being grown in the Mutatá ERA developed by PASO Colombia. 
 
The “Imagining Our Image” grant has sought to strengthen proficiency in audiovisual creation, storytelling and film production while encouraging the use of multimedia in the non-central regions of Colombia. Likewise, the grant aims to support the creation of bottom up methodologies to strengthen grassroots communication efforts being developed in these regions of the country.
 
The project "Rural Alternative School of Liquid Communication in Mutatá, Antioquia" applies an innovative methodology that combines the "learning-by-doing" approach of the Rural Alternative Schools (ERA) with the development of content marketing strategies created from the bottom up by ex-combatants promoting their entrepreneurships. The project will emphasize the use of mobile devices and other resources that communities have at their disposal for the production of media content to commercialize the products they grow and breed. 

Participants will have the opportunity to take part in practical workshops in which social media, mobile devices, short-form videos, and liquid formats typical of digital marketing that will, ultimately, become tools to strengthen their productive peace-building efforts. 

Storytelling is believed to be one of the strongest, most compelling tools to engage customers and stakeholders, and rally support for these ongoing peacebuilding efforts. The “Imagine Our Image” grant empowers locals to do just that, and PASO Colombia is looking forward to conveying more empowering stories of ex-combatants, community members, ERA participants, and more that are all striving for peace.

One Earth Future's PASO Colombia program (Paz Sostenible para Colombia, translated as Sustainable Peace for Colombia) believes strategic and inclusive collaboration across all sectors of Colombia’s diverse population is key to sustained peace after decades of civil war. PASO is committed to working with local communities to identify and develop economic opportunities, spur job growth, strengthen the social fabric of the country and encourage communities to be accountable for maintaining long-term stability and peace. Other One Earth Future Foundation initiatives designed to prevent or end violent conflict and build sustainable peace globally include Secure Fisheries, Stable Seas, Shuraako, Our Secure Future, and Open Nuclear Network. For more information, visit: One Earth Future