Event Coverage: Youssef Abdelaziz
Photography: Shift-Network media team
Edited by: Mona Timor Shehata
My pen – or shall I say my keyboard – was in a debate with my mind regarding the writing style of this piece. Should I write the coverage as a professional reporter, in a professional form, copying what happened on an electronic platform? Or should I write it as a passionate working member who witnessed the whole thing from its very beginning?
I figured that I can take the best of both worlds by covering the event in a professional way and adding the passion-flavored introduction that you have just read. Sadly, every beautiful journey must come to an end, and this was the end of a beautiful journey full of knowledge, dedication, passion and hard work.
The closing ceremony of “Media in Motion’16” project was held in the Arab Academy for Science and Technology & Maritime Transport (AASTMT).
Media in Motion (MIM) is a one-week project. It’s goal is to assist in the expansion of knowledge in the field of media and the use of media in its different fields through a number of lectures and workshops. MIM’16 did not just focus on “knowledge”, it also focused on practicing and applying this knowledge in reality, building a solid ground of experience in each field the participants were lectured in.
The lectures and sessions varied from journalism to social media and E-marketing going through videography and filmmaking, and concluding with the project’s theme “Media and Its Role in Conflict Resolution”. The project also included some workshops about several personal skills like presentation skills, public speaking, communication and debating skills.
The closing ceremony commenced with Shift-Network President Mr. Mohamed Atef’s speech, in which he discussed the project and how it must not stop at this stage and must be applied in real life and to the participants’ careers. He talked about the role of Shift-Network specifically and civil society in general in sustainable development, noting that “we had only 50 participants in MIM’16, but we know that those 50 participants will deliver the knowledge they received to their friends and relatives. If every participant delivered the knowledge and information to one person, then we are definitely winners.”
Concluding his speech, Mr. Mohamed wished that he would see the participants as the trainers and facilitators of next year’s MIM and thanked the staff members who came up with the project and worked hard with dedication during a short time frame.
Then, a short video was displayed summarizing the project and its good moments.
Ms. Serene Elawaad, a participant in MIM’16, gave the next speech. She talked about her experience in the project saying: “Being a participant in MIM’16 helped me to understand different media perspectives.”She pointed out that the project gave her hope that as one of this country’s youth, you can make a change.
Being a student with a media major at AAST, Ms. Serene finished her speech by saying that MIM’16 made her realize that her dream of changing the Egyptian media is not that hard when you find people who share the same thoughts.
Ms. Marwa El-Sharaawy, a staff member in Shift-Network, changed the mood from the formal tone of the ceremony to a casual one with her amazing singing performance in a scheduled five-minute break.
After the short break, Mr. Soliman El-Radad, another participant, gave a speech. He referred to the project as his first civil work experience ever, explaining that he broke a strong fear barrier by communicating in a network where he knew no one. He highlighted the important role of personal journalism, saying that he learned that you cannot only be a news receiver, but you can also be a news maker as well.
He spoke about the effectiveness of the skills workshops that added a lot to his skills, concluding that the most beneficial thing in the whole experience is adding ideas to his own and learning to think from different perspectives.
Mr. Ahmed Elawaad, one of the participants’ parents attended the ceremony and shared a few words with the audience. He noted the important roles of media organizations and entities in Egypt and in the whole world. Although he expressed his disappointment towards the Egyptian media organization, he said that the young people who took part in MIM’16 gave him some hope in putting the media on the right track. Mr. Elawaad concluded his speech by saying that he feels that the future is going to be brighter as long as youth leaders like the attendees are in the picture.
Another relaxing moment in the ceremony was when Mr. Ahmed Hamido played his oud alongside vocalist Wael Fareed, giving a splendid performance together.
Then, it was time to honor the participants. Mr. Mohamed Atef, Mr. Ahmed Hassan and Mr. Youssef Abdelaziz -from the high board of Shift-Network- handed the certificates to the participants, followed by honoring the staff members and handing them their certificates as well.
Finally, the participants, staff and guests all gathered to take one last group photo to announce the end of the journey.