The Story Bridge Archive - Connecting Communities
Foróige want young people to actively connect with their community this summer in a meaningful and long-lasting way through The Foróige Story Bridge Archive.
Throughout July and August, we want younger generations to record short 15 minute interviews with older people in their family or community about their experiences of the COVID-19 lockdown. Whilst also taking the opportunity to capture observations and memories of local and national events in their earlier lives and their own experience of being a teenager.
We hope that young people will consider it a privilege to hear these stories and that older people will relish the chance to pass on their experiences.
The recording of wisdom lived experience and personal history is as old as stories themselves. We hope communities all over Ireland will get involved and feel the power of passing these treasured memories from one generation to another and having them recorded for generations to come.
How it works
It’s simple. Young people themselves can identify older people they want to interview, such as a grandparent or older relative, an older neighbour or someone in the community.
There are Foróige staff and volunteers in each county in Ireland leading The Foróige Story Bridge Archive. They will send further information you may need to get involved. Young people must be accompanied by a Foróige volunteer or parent / guardian while conducting the interviews. The young person is free to do one interview or a series if they wish.
If you have any questions please see The Story Bridge Frequently Asked Questions section.
How to get involved
We’ve created The Foróige Story Bridge Digital Pack for Young People which has everything you need to get started. From a helpful guide to recording video and audio on a mobile phone, to how to prepare for and conduct an interview.
● Story Bridge Archive Digital Pack
● Story Bridge Archive Interview Pack
● Story Bridge Archive Consent Forms
● Story Bridge Archive County Coordinator Contacts
● Story Bridge Archive Interview Questions
The initiative is inspired by the Dúchas Project, which houses approximately 740,000 pages of folklore that was compiled by young people from 5,000 primary schools between 1937 and 1939.
COVID-19 was a unique experience for all of us, but especially for older people in our communities. We want to use this opportunity to reach out to those who may have been isolated during this time, hear and record their experiences and what other memories it prompts.
The Foróige Story Bridge Archive material will be formally hosted in the UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre Archive, NUI Galway, and in local libraries where possible.
