In anticipation of the International Day for Tolerance on November 16th, we are proud to celebrate the creators who are using the power of one view to open minds, inspire understanding, celebrate culture, and make a difference. From a beauty vlogger in California to a rapper in Sudan, a painter in Germany to a comedy collective in India, YouTube’s Creators for Change program brings together storytellers from around the world to share moments of hope, humanity, and acceptance. At YouTube, we believe that the world is a better place when we listen, share and build community through our stories. YouTube Creators for Change is a critical part of this mission and we are incredibly proud of the continued momentum of the creators from around the world who are using their voices to overcome divisiveness and hate.
Today, YouTube’s Creators for Change Ambassadors came together to release
over 50 new films that aim to promote tolerance, encourage empathy, and spark dialogue, locally and globally.
In May
we announced that 47 Global Ambassadors joined the Creators for Change program, a global initiative dedicated to amplifying and multiplying the voices of YouTube creators who are using their platforms to spread messages of positivity, hope and acceptance. Since the announcement, they’ve been working with mentors like award-winning filmmaker
Eliot Rausch, the Founder of The
Nzinga Effect, Eliza Anyangwe, and
Anthony Robinson, the Director of Training & Public Engagement at the
Truman National Security Project on persuasive storytelling and bridge-building to create inspiring Impact Films. Some highlights from this year’s films include:
- US-based singer-songwriter MILCK composed “A Little Peace” in response to violence globally. As part of her project she created a music video where multiple singers harmonized with one another in the name of peace.
- Australian-based YouTube Creator and rapper, L-FRESH the LION created a project that follows his work with Manbir SIngh (Akaal Fauj - kirtan teacher) trying to preserve Sikh culture through hip-hop and traditional music.
- UK-based skin-positivity Creator Em Ford created a follow-up video to her 2015 viral video “You Look disgusting" called “Redefine Pretty;” a short film detailing how beauty standards psychologically affect young women.
- India’s biggest female comedy YouTube creator, MostlySane’s video “No Offence” is a funny yet timely follow-up rap video to “Shameless”, focused on dealing with various kinds of hate speech - both online and in real life.
- Dentist by day, YouTube creator by night, Maha AJ created the “Salimmik” music video as a way to pay homage to her home country of Sudan. This love-letter to Sudan aims to show a side of Sudan that is not typically portrayed in media
Driving impact locally
In addition to the global program, creators around the world are using their voices to stand for positivity through our local chapter efforts in 9 countries. Through a combination of creator-led videos that opens minds to educational workshops that inspire critical though, local initiatives span 9 markets and continue to inspire local communities. For example:
- in Asia, Creators for Change joined forces with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and social change agency Love Frankie to support emerging YouTube creators committed to tackling tough social issues in their videos through a regional Creators for Change Fellows program. Following a series of kick-off Boot Camps across Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand, a committee selected 15 regional Fellows from these 5 countries, collectively representing an audience of over 2 million fans. Armed with production funding and opportunities to work with civil society organizations, these up-and-coming voices have created over 15 inspiring videos.
- Be Internet Citizens, the United Kingdom’s local Creators for Change chapter, is on target to reach 20,000 students you the end of the year with content about responsible Internet use and empowering young adults to be positive voices online.
- Israel hosted almost 100 top creators for a Tolerance Summit in connection with the local chapter initiative, #Ovdim_Al_Ze. The 2018 Tolerance Challenge was announced, an invitation for local creators to share meaningful and heartfelt videos for release on the International Day for Tolerance taking place on November 16th, 2018.
- The German chapter of Creators for Change, #NichtEgal, kicked off a nation-wide roll-out of school-focused workshops in October. Targeting 61 schools in all 16 German states, this program aims to train 200 teachers and 1,500 mentor students, who are forwarding their knowledge to 10,000+ students within the program until the beginning of December. These workshops are supported by our local YouTube creators who share their experiences and advise the students on how to have a positive impact in their communities.
- So far this year, 35 000 youth have benefited from anti fake-news and hate speech related workshops in France as part of the Toi-même Tu filmes program, working closely with partners like Les Petits Débrouillards and Génération Numérique to deliver trainings all over France. Additionally, YouTube Creators for Change has partnered with the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner to sponsor the 2018 Mobile Film Festival, encouraging youth around the globe to create short films that celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights.
To all the creators who participated in this year’s program: thank you. We are grateful for your passion and dedication.
-- Juniper Downs, Head of YouTube Public Policy
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