Youth Languages: Your mobile, your expression

Youth Languages: Your mobile, your expression is a project empowering young Mexicans to produce short cell phone films expressing their culture, as well as their ideas for improving their education or the living conditions in their community. Youth Languages is based on the premise that social exclusion can only be overcome by helping those affected to exercise their rights of participation, expression and access to culture. Following the principle: “Your mobile, your expression,” young professional artists visit community centres and schools offering youngsters skill-building sessions on story board development, photography, video animation, video editing, urban art and music. Project topics include: Cultural Diversity, Sustainable Environment, Non-violence and Gender Equality. The program is directed at indigenous, migrant and socially disadvantaged youth at risk, providing them with creative tools to express themselves and be heard. Participants learn concrete skills while reflecting at the same time on their own cultural identity, their communities and gender roles, in order to create media messages via mobile phones which give value to their roots, their community and their identity as young people. As many targeted youth do not have a cell phone, “Your mobile, your expression” asks young people from universities to donate mobile phones with cameras, so that all who wish to join the project, can participate.