One dozen of the most dynamic young leaders (ages 16-32) from community- and sport-based organizations throughout Africa gathered at the 2007 Next Step conference in Namibia and learned to use multimedia tools to represent experiences of the conference's youth delegation.

Their efforts were partly sponsored by Nike and the BBC. “We recognize that the work young leaders are doing with sport and community organizations is best told by them,” said Hannah Jones, Vice President Corporate Responsibility, Nike, Inc.

This was a remarkable group, said Chris Lunch, director of Insight (www.insightshare.org), which managed the workshop. “Usually at these conferences you get people who are more privileged and educated, but these were the cream of the crop from a social perspective,” he said. “They were selected because of how engaged they were. It was not about education or wealth.”

The group worked together for six days, half of Insight’s usual workshop time, but they bonded quickly. “The day ended with no strangers, but just friends who never met before,” wrote Kitso Masi, a delegate from Botswana, in his blog after the first day of training. (Masi describes his experience with gangs in a film.)

In addition to learning to use video equipment, group members brainstormed themes and content for their film, identified audiences -- local and national governments, parents, churches, and other youth who could become engaged and inspired -- and determined that these groups needed to see positive experiences and success stories.

“Despite the growing sport for social change movement, skeptics remain about the power of sport to have an impact on serious social issues,” says Changemakers Executive Director Charlie Brown. “Having those positively affected by sport tell their own stories shows this as a legitimate movement.”

Rather than acting as documentary filmmakers, who observe their subjects from the outside, this group practiced participatory video (PV), a process by which subjects take an active role in the film. They interviewed other youth delegates at the conference, but also ventured into the community and spent a few hours with a team headed to the Special Olympics in China, a group playing “blind cricket,” and a local Paralympics team.

In each case, the young leaders began by showing one of their subjects how to use the video equipment. After a bit of practice, the newly minted PV pro would pass this knowledge on to another in the group, until everyone had learned what to do.

Both subjects and facilitators were thrilled by this empowering experience. “The day ended with a group of us going for a township visit to work with local communities and the Paralympics group to help them use video to strengthen their advocacy and action messages,” blogged Masi. “The day couldn’t get any better!!!!!!!”

Lunch notes that both PV and sports present a challenge to those they engage. “But it’s useful to have a focus and activity that gives a sense of achievement,” he says. “PV tied in nicely with sports here. Similar things are gained from both.”