7th September 2016:
A grassroots comics workshop was held with the students of Institute of Home Economics, New Delhi. Where graduation students participated to learn how to use comics as a development communication tool in their respective areas of intervention. Students also learn about a medium that helped them express their core issues and stories that they are not allowed to talk about.
21st August 2016:
World Comics Network Nepal in collaboration with CWIN organized a workshop on wall poster comics for child rights in Kathmandu. Participants mostly child activists shared their stories of positive change. The workshop was conducted by Nirijana Bhatta.
06th -10th August, 2016
Students of MSW (Social work) Jorhat, Assam, India, showing off their comics after attending 3 days workshop to use grassroots comics as a development communication tool as part of their course curriculum. This two part of the workshop was divided into production of wall poster comics and wall newspapers. While wall poster comics were created on issues like Uranium Mining, Dam & Displacement, Migrant workers, witch hunting and many more issues affecting common masses. While wall newspaper students learn the technique of news gathering, interviews, feature writing and photography. The comics and newspapers developed during the workshop were exhibited at Jorhat college in the town.
25th -26th July 2016:
Another attempt to end discrimination towards the North- Easterns was made through a workshop when No stereotype Plz campaign reached Tezpur, Assam. The workshop held at the peaceful tea gardens in Dhekiajuli, Tezpur where participants were mostly the Adivasi students of the area. Participants learn quickly and shared their views about stereotyping. They not only accepted the fact that the problem exists everywhere and sometimes they too knowingly or unknowingly have been discriminating the others.
24th July 2016
Students of Leh learnt the art of communicating through grassroots comics during a workshop. The workshop was conducted by Joe Michel, an artist and student of community development at Portland State University in Portland, Oregon USA. Joe was interning at Ladakh Arts and Media Organisation in Leh, Ladakh while he thought of engaging youth. Joe’s professor suggested him to use the grassroots comics, which he became aware of through Sharad Sharma during a conference on Community Development at USA.
Total seven comics with topics ranging from impacts of modernization in villages to using the dustbin instead of throwing everything on the ground. Photocopies of those comics were made and pasted them all onto a board. The board was put up on the street in the main market with a paper and pen attached to the board encouraging people to share their thoughts or draw as well. One day some street kids showed up, one small girl left for a minute and returned with nearly her entire family of kids and a big red bag of colored pencils and started colouring them. The school kids made the comics and the street kids colored them
September 2016
New trainers from Ladakh Arts and Media Organisation conducted a workshop at a girl’s primary school in Leh. There were around 30 participants and many wonderful comics were created with strong messages ranging from environmental conservation to showing compassion to humans and all living beings.
13th 18th July 2016
World Comics India in collaboration with CAFI (Control Arms Federation of India) organized a 5 day grassroots comics and wall newspaper workshop where first and second half was divided for respective themes. Various artists, CAFI activists, Meira Paibe Maiti’s and staff of the organization participated in the workshop. After 5 days of hard work, participants produced 21 wall posters comics and 5 wall newspapers which were then exhibited at Manipur University.
1st -2nd July 2016:
Grassroots Comics was introduced as an innovative medium in graphic medicine under which workshops were held at AIIMS. Apart from doctors, community medicine professionals, nurses, lab technicians and heads of various medicine department attended the workshop. Participants engrossed in the workshop made efforts to understand the medium and its application in their areas. Post workshops, the demands for conducting such workshops in other medicine departments is increasing.
