Social Innovation: Luggage Porters @Pohoda
In socialist Slovakia, homelessness was officially not a problem; the authorities removed people without homes. In post-socialist Slovakia, the issue has become visible, and people experiencing homelessness have been stigmatized. To bring those without homes from the margins into the middle of society, the NGO Proti Prúdu pays them to carry luggage at Pohoda Festival. By working as the Nota Bene porters, they can earn money and casually mingle with the festival-goers. Read the whole story below.
This story is part of the EU-funded project FUSION – Festivals as Social Innovation Incubators. In FUSION, experts on festivals and youth work have joined forces to create a tailored suite of resources, so that festivals can realize their potential as platforms for social innovation. These include a good-practice guide with social innovation projects at European festivals, a how-to toolbox for developing projects specifically for festivals, and alliances between festivals and social innovation organizations. FUSION will enable young people/organizations to use festivals as a steppingstone to implement their own ideas, products and technologies for the benefit of society.
