Connecting generations through photography on the theme "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion"

Goran Sretenoski, CEO of Canon Adria, said about the initiative of connecting generations: "The project stems from Canon's Kyosei corporate philosophy and expresses our commitment to people living and working together for the common good, regardless of culture, customs, political beliefs, language, race, sexual orientation, religion, social status and/or differences in gender identity. Unfortunately, there are many factors that stand in the way of this, but we are working to address them through various initiatives, all with the goal of inspiring a world of change. We are driven by the responsibility and desire to develop a better society, more diverse, inclusive and fair, where people are valued, respected, have a sense of belonging and can thrive. Societies where diverse people not only have the same basic rights but the same opportunities. A society in which we recognize peculiarities, where we see beyond our own life experiences and where people are empowered through the feeling that they are valuable and valued."

The power of creative visual storytelling and critical thinking

People with help creative expression we tell our stories, express our opinions and present our unique point of view. However, not everyone has the opportunity, knowledge, skills, or just confidence to express themselves. It is our responsibility to support the next generation of storytellers by developing their skills and offering them a platform for expressing opinions on global issues and thus an incentive for change and a better future for all of us.

Within Canon's Intergenerational Program the lecturers and mentors presented the participants with the power of creative visual storytelling and critical thinking about socially important issues, especially those that are important to them or the people in their environment. In the beginning, she led the participants in the project into the world of diversity, justice and inclusion Barbara Zupančič (Slovenia's Diversity Charter), and they were able to learn first-hand about photographic stories and reportage photography from the mentors Igor Rosina (Digital Camera) and Andrej Ravnak (Mojevesolje.si). Equipped with basic knowledge and some Canon photo equipment, the participants were divided into project groups and chose topics for photography.

Breaking down prejudice and uncovering stories of diversity, equity and inclusion

The project has its motto already embedded in the foundation, because with the very selection of unusual photography teams, consisting of a high school student and a retired person, it addresses one of the forms of diversity, that is ageism or generationism, as a set of stereotypes and prejudices based on the individual's age. Eleven participating students of the first year of the School of Horticulture and Visual Arts in Celje and eight seniors - retirees, who attend the photography club at the University for the Third Life Period Žalec, break these prejudices and each with their own unique view of the subject and creation discover different forms of diversity, justice and involvement in their environment.

Intergenerational couples engaged with creativity and critical thinking to eight very different stories, which have a common red thread - they talk about people who do not conform to the stereotypes in society, deviate in some way from the average and, because of their difference, easily find themselves in the center of attention, surrounded by biased comments. They shared their stories in front of photographic lenses Romanian seasonal workers in the hop fields of the Savinja Valley, a person with Down syndrome, a top athlete without a leg, pensioners who are passionate players of the telephone game, black adopted children in the Slovenian environment, a tetraplegic photographer, a street queen and people in the process of drug addiction treatment. Through the challenges of their daily lives, we can better understand the problems and pains as well as the opportunities that diversity presents to them.

"Working in teams or junior-senior pairs was an interesting challenge of connecting generations, also for both mentors, who had to encourage the spirit of cooperation and teamwork in the team in a very short time. For both generations, the biggest challenge was basically taking pictures in the field and approaching strangers. Everyone has a slightly peculiar approach to photography, a view of people's stories, a way of communication, life background and experiences. The relations between these two generations are well known to us from everyday life - while they are very well and positively connected through family ties, on the other hand, due to different life experiences and basic generational differences, they are quite different. On the project, the couples met only two or three times, and during this time they managed to get to know each other a little, establish communication, and collaborate on the same task. For a deeper relationship in which we could give each other more, exchange our views on life, learn from each other different approaches to photography, etc. of course, the project would have to last significantly longer. But it was interesting to observe how some couples connected very quickly and on their own initiative, while others were somehow uncomfortable or they devoted more energy to their rather demanding photographic task," they said about mentoring intergenerational couples Andreja Ravnak and Igor Rosina.

Everyone has the right to deviate from the norm, but we can all encourage, inspire and remind each other what it means live in harmony. And even though we are diverse, we are similar in many ways, because every person wants to belong, to be respected and valued despite or precisely because of their differences.

MOMENTS FROM THE OPENING OF THE EXHIBITION: digital-kamera.si