Digital Storytelling: putting young asylum seekers at the heart of the story

Abstract

As new stories from asylum seekers and refugees permeate the reality of European societies today, a whole new set of challenges and opportunities arise for building a common sense of belonging. Spaces for intercultural dialogue become crucial in connecting us all in a way that allows us to discover ‘the other’ through our own process of self-reflection and self-discovery. This paper presents our experience in working with a method of digital storytelling with a group of young asylum seekers and refugees living in Belgium and Sweden. It explores the need for adopting an intercultural perspective to our diverse societies by offering opportunities to get to know each other through our personal stories, going beyond the surface, and thus puts the focus on the potential of ‘the other’ in being an active part of the development of our common society.