Outreach ideas

The following are ideas that can be the basis of an outreach plan. The key players would be the Deca Director, Community Facilitator and later Program Manager (as well as Adef staff where relevant) in coordination with Adef's media team. These outreach ideas are start-up points for the beginning stages of Deca, and some of them would be ongoing throughout the different stages

Outreach ideas to be used as basis for an outreach strategy

• As Moqattam is made up of several communities that are very socially and economically diverse, we advise that different communities are targeted in the outreach during the initial stages. There is a risk if for example the initial outreach targets only artists and techies or those in the immediate surrounding area of Deca - as these people are more privileged - that Deca would be more viewed/identified in a particular way, and that others entering Deca for the first time would feel less ownership and identification. It is important for people from the diverse communities of Moqattam to be involved in the initial stage when its identity is being formed

• Conduct a press campaign announcing Deca in local newspapers and cultural outlets. Press release announcing the opening and initial program of Deca, its uniqueness, specific niche etc..building on ADEF’s reputation and extended network

• Door to door in the surrounding areas of Deca - meet locals and describe what Deca offers and discover the needs of the local area. Provide a sense of understanding that the space is theirs and they are needed in its creation and development. Eg with regards to the immediate area where there are several villas it must be a conscious strategy to target not just those who own and live in the villas, but local workers and their kids

• Cooperate with NGOs in Moqattam - build relationships within Moqattam and provide understanding of what Deca offers to the area. Run workshops within the NGOs that parallel their needs and at the same time reflect the focus of Deca

• Have community meetings and focus groups. We do not advise one public meeting as there is a risk that power struggle and competing spheres of influence will dominate. So more productive conversations are likely to be sparked by initially having separate meetings according to people’s roles and specialities - eg one for teachers, one for ngo workers, one for artists and techies, one for local public figures etc eventually bringing some

together

• Contacts within community mapping - nihal. Several contacts that Nihal has networked should be followed up with and further explored. These contacts can be very useful in understanding better what the Moqattam area and needs, and the further development of workshops/activities offered in Deca

• Create Adef/Deca website - within the website provide descriptions of the space, different workshops available, space rentals, lending library, and equipment availability. Also within the site advertise works of like-minded initiatives

• Organize activities that would build the skills of children/youth from Moqattam organizations to create an online and social media presence for their work and bring these different projects together for others to engage with and learn from. To prepare the work that needs to go into this site, children/youth would learn all the needed skills like photography, filmmaking, animation, web-development etc

• Open mic in areas where local young people hang out for example awlad ragab supermarket on street 9 - is a garden and kiosk. also Lo'lo'a garden near hezb wasat been there for years, are computers etc

http://www.mashrou3almareekh.com/

• Public screenings of the work of local filmmakers in public spaces in Moqattam to publicize their work, build a sense of community, advertise Deca eg. with flyers on this occasion. Local filmmakers whose films would be being shown would be invested in the success of the event and so invite their friends/contacts. In the future, such events may feature works made at Deca

• Days dedicated to outreach - one suggestion would be to initially create curiosity around Deca by flooding Moqattam with flyers, stickers etc... that only have the logo of Deca as a symbol, without stipulating what Deca is (in the microbuses, shops, stencils on the walls etc...), creating a buzz. The 2nd stage would be a concrete press campaign with flyers, articles in local newspapers where you answer people’s questioning about what Deca is and what is its purpose. In parallel, a team should talk to people on microbuses/cafes etc... and hand out flyers. Deca’s advertising campaign should be present in all relevant local NGOs

• Specifically advertise Deca to the Mitr applicants and targets, so they are made aware that a space and its facilities are available for the development of their work, as well as build on a sense of community via the beneficiaries of the Mitr program. The grantees could kick start the idea that Deca stands as a co-working space, where artists/techies involved in a variety of initiatives hang out in the space, share their visions, works and critically exchange on how to go about their creative process