The documentaries SERENDIP and SAFARA as tools for dialogue with the younger generations.
Every year, we meet with hundreds of students in Italian schools to share a story that goes beyond a simple humanitarian mission. Through screenings of the documentaries SERENDIP and SAFARA, TakeMeBack brings real stories, real people, and places that often seem very far away into classrooms—places that, through storytelling, suddenly feel close at hand.
In recent years, we have been guests at the “G. B. Vico” National Boarding School in Chieti, the “Giuseppe Mezzanotte” Middle School,the “F.P. Michetti” Comprehensive Public School,the “Tito Acerbo” Technical Institute, and many other schools that have chosen to devote time and attention to issues such as solidarity, the right to education, and responsibility toward others.
When we visit a school, we don’t just show a film. We explain how a mission comes about, what it means to travel thousands of kilometers to deliver school supplies directly into the hands of children, and what stories lie behind each project we’ve carried out. The images thus become a tool for opening a dialogue that involves both teachers and students, but in which the students are our most curious and attentive listeners.
We live in a time when a great deal of information flashes rapidly before our eyes. We see images from all over the world; we read numbers, statistics, and news stories that often end up blending together. Stories, on the other hand, have a different power: they give a face to numbers, a voice to statistics, and a story to people. It is precisely through this process that a distant reality ceases to be an abstract concept and becomes something with which we can truly connect.
It is during these meetings that the most important aspect of our work comes to light. The questions students ask are not just about travel or missions, but about the very meaning of solidarity, the differences between cultures, and the opportunities that many of us take for granted but that in other parts of the world are still a goal to be achieved.
For TakeMeBack, going into schools means investing in the next generation. It means giving young people the tools to see the world from a broader perspective, to understand realities different from their own, and to discover that even a small gesture can help bring about real change.
While our missions allow us to reach schools and communities on the other side of the world, our encounters with students remind us why we started this work. Because every educational project stems from the same conviction: change comes not only from what we provide, but also from the ideas, questions, and relationships we choose to build.
Would you like to bring TakeMeBack to your school?
Teachers, school administrators, and interested schools can contact us to arrange a screening of the documentaries *Serendip* and *Safara*, followed by a discussion with our team. This is an opportunity to explore topics such as solidarity, the right to education, global citizenship, and international cooperation through real-life stories and firsthand accounts.
Contact us at info@takemeback.eu to work together to organize an event tailored to your students.