GRASS-ROOT MEDIA
Tuesday, May 12, 2015
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Sports For Well Being: Finnish Worker's Sports Federation: TUL
Joining The TUL
Crew
Joining what I may
call the TUL crew at the beginning of May this year was to me like
getting back into the arena of activities which I had been partially
out of for a while.
The environment was
not totally alien to me since I have earlier worked with a large
organization almost the same size as TUL, but there were new and
interesting people to meet, and the working spirit was very cordial.
There was a big
change going on at the office the week I started, the big move from
the Itakeskus office building to a new office building in Hertoniemi,
which was not an easy task..
When I first stepped
into the new office, the entire place was littered with moving boxes
and the staff of the moving company were still bringing in stuff from
the old office.
My principal Ismo
introduced me, and took me to the new office space I now share with
him.
I felt a great sense
of belonging right away while mingling with other members of the
staff, among the chaos of littering office equipments, and I knew
right away from that moment that I was in the right place.
Yhteisille
Kentille Hanke
My assignment at TUL
is anchored on a new project called Yhteisille Kenttile (Common Grounds Project).
It is a Sports and
Education Ministry funded project aimed at activating migrants to get
involved in sports for their well being. The argument behind the
project is that most migrants do not have the information, and other
possibilities to do sports, or get into sport activities of their
choice.
There are many
reasons for this, and it ranges from lack of information about
existing and accessible facilities, to lack of motivation.
It is a known fact
that most ailments people suffer are due to inadequate physical
exercise.Inability to do
sports leads to health problems, and health problems take a huge toll
on state finances.
It will be healthier
and less expensive to invest on a project that provide possibilities
for citizens to involve themselves in sporting activities, than
paying huge healthcare subsidies.
In practical terms
the project will have some TUL member organizations partner with
migrant organizations in their locality to work out a sporting
program.
The TUL member
provides the administrative and sporting facilities and
technicalities, and the migrant organization also bring in their
know-how, and their network of members as target groups.
Meanwhile we have a
pilot involving ten organizations, 5 TUL members, and 5 migrants
organization going. There is also the possibility to continue to the
next stage after the pilot.
The Finnish
Worker's Sports Festival (Lakeuden Kisat) Seinajoki 2014
I had the
opportunity an honor of being a part of the big TUL tradition of
Citizen Sports Festival which is captioned Lakeuden Kisat. This is a
massive festival of sports that showcase almost all possible sports
and games you can think of. It has both traditional and mainstream
sports events in its program. It attracts thousands of participants
from different works of life, and of all ages. It is one of a kind,
and there is nothing else like it in the whole country.
'There is nothing
that more clearly portray TUL's role as a leading organization in all
inclusive sports for well being than this massive festival, the
Lakeuden kisat.
According to
information I got from my colleagues, in the past this festival
attracted participants to the tune of 4o thousand people, and often
took place at the Olympic stadium and other open field facilities.
For this years,
festival, the number of participants though still significant, has
fallen down to 3000 people or more.
It was an amazing
experience to see such large number of people of all ages showing
such dedication towards sports. Organizers, volunteers, participants,
everyone giving a helping hand to ensure success.
The perfect
combination of the sport activities with cultural themes also added
value to the festival. There was music, dancing, theatre, amusement
park visits and camping for the kids, sightseeing and so on. The
festival practically took over the entire city of Seinajoki, and the
city government led by the Mayor played a leading role as hosts.
As a volunteer
without a specified task, I had the opportunity of roaming around and
viewing a variety of events and at different venues of the festival.
What struck me most was the general mood of comportment among all the
people. It further pointed to the importance of this form of low
threshold sports. I watched little kid in judo games. It was so
beautiful to see their eagerness to participate. The winners and
losers bow to each other with high spirit, big smile, and a hug.
The joy of
participation was the driving force. I watched old ladies dance
merrily to the traditional children folk song 'Täti Monika' on the
open stage in the city market square. It was all merry making, and
happy feelings. This translated to the real meaning of the term
'Sports and Well Being.
The other key point
of observation was the level of socialization afforded by the event.
People and groups came from different counties around Finland, and
also from outside the country.
This afforded the
opportunity for physical contact and socialisation.
Part of the program
was also the International workers Federation Chess tournament which
featured participants from Bulgaria, Austria, and Israel
Does the dwindling
number of participants in this great event tell something?
This is one question
that is hanging on many people's mind especially the staff and
members of Tul. At the end of this successful event hung the
uncertainty of what lay in the future.
The way and mode
people interact have drifted from the known traditional ways, and
this have immensely affected attitude. Could this be responsible to
the reduction in the number of people willing to physically
participate voluntarily in large citizen events like the Lakeuden
kisat?
Would it require a
new approach in planning and executing subsequent festivals to meet
up with the new ways of thinking?
If so, what would be
the new approach?
These are questions
that require thorough research investigation to find answers and
solutions.
I my view, I think
it will be to the interest of the state and city authorities to find
resources for TUL to work towards finding new ways of keeping this
very important sports tradition going.
Tuesday, November 06, 2012
FLASHBACK: Mokustadi on ATV
In the late 90s a new television service was started by a known media guru in Finland, the man who successfully guided Finland's pioneer private commercial radio station 'Radio City' to success in the 80s through 90s, Mr Christian Moustgaard. The TV outfit was named ATV, Alue Televisio in Finnish, meaning, community, or if you like, local area television. It was something akin to the social networks of today, more of a you tube TV where the contents covers all kinds of events, topics, and other activities that mainstream media would never reach. It instantly became a hit, especially among young people, as most of the content providers were youths.
The life span of ATV was unfortunately cut short by financial constrain, to the extent that at a time the station resorted to looping porno by night time to meet up with the gigantic bills it had to pay to the cable company.
ATV was a concept that was far ahead of its time for if the station was lunched a few years later, it would have survived, as the improved technology of the day would have reduced the financial requirements for running it. All the same, it stands on record that ATV was the first ever Grass-Root' Television in Finland, thanks to the actions of innovative Christian Moustgaard.
'MOKUSTADI' (Multicultural Helsinki)
Mokustadi was one of the programs looped on ATV. It covered multicultural activities around the city. These were events that do not feature in mainstream media, even though they were an important part of the evolving new Finnish society. The program was conceptualised by Ike Chime, a former radio broadcaster with FRCN, the Nigerian national public radio, and the defunct pioneer private commercial radio in Finland, Radio City, Helsinki.
Below is a flashback on the program 'Mokustadi' featuring a multicultural band called 'Afrobeat'.
The life span of ATV was unfortunately cut short by financial constrain, to the extent that at a time the station resorted to looping porno by night time to meet up with the gigantic bills it had to pay to the cable company.
ATV was a concept that was far ahead of its time for if the station was lunched a few years later, it would have survived, as the improved technology of the day would have reduced the financial requirements for running it. All the same, it stands on record that ATV was the first ever Grass-Root' Television in Finland, thanks to the actions of innovative Christian Moustgaard.
Christian Moustgaard |
'MOKUSTADI' (Multicultural Helsinki)
Mokustadi was one of the programs looped on ATV. It covered multicultural activities around the city. These were events that do not feature in mainstream media, even though they were an important part of the evolving new Finnish society. The program was conceptualised by Ike Chime, a former radio broadcaster with FRCN, the Nigerian national public radio, and the defunct pioneer private commercial radio in Finland, Radio City, Helsinki.
Below is a flashback on the program 'Mokustadi' featuring a multicultural band called 'Afrobeat'.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Monday, December 10, 2007
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
ODE TO WINTER
BASSEY IKPI, a young Nigerian poet. She is simply awesome, I needn't say more. Just watch her and see for yourself.
Thursday, August 02, 2007
WHAT IS POETRIVISION
POETRIVISION is all about using creative visual elements in a poetic fashion to create an art form, it is also the use of powerful visual elements to drive home the massages in a poem.
POETRIVISION is the creation of Ike Chime
POETRIVISION is the creation of Ike Chime
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