Public Achievement visit to Bush Radio, South Africa

Tuesday 26 January 10

The warmth and sunshine of South Africa seems like a distant memory now that the team is back in frosty Northern Ireland after the trip – did we really spend 2 weeks in shorts and t-shirts?!

It’s time for some photos from our amazing experience…

We loved meeting the young people at Bush Radio and we were very impressed seeing the youngsters in Bush Tots broadcasting their own radio show.

One of the purposes of our trip was to attend Bush Radio’s annual Media Kidocracy Konference.

The 2009 conference was the 10^th such conference Bush Radio has run and it was obvious that the young people who attend get a lot out of the experience.

Delegates attending the conference were split between 5 groups each tasked with a different issue to consider and each using a different medium to convey their ideas. Nathan aka Shiv was a member of the graffiti production group who painted a cool mural in Bush Radio’s studios to reflect some of their ideas having explored the significance of culture and language.

 Una’s group focussed on the issue of child labour and used the internet to inform other young people and share their views.

You can read their powerpoint presentation.

Caoimhe was part of the group which looked at drug and alcohol abuse and produced a programme for radio. 

Debs got to be part of the photography production group which concentrated on the issue of environmental pollution and snapped a collection of photos from around Cape Town illustrating the extent and impact of pollution.

You can see a slideshow of their photos.

Finally there was a group of young people which examined the issue of gender inequality and produced a video to make their point. 

We all really enjoyed the conference and getting to know the young people from Cape Town and were very impressed with their confidence as presenters and their passion to make the world a better place. This is a photo of all the delegates on the last day of the conference.

Of course, for the team it wasn’t all work and no play! We went up Table Mountain,

we went to the Aquarium,

we found some Irish connections on a township tour

and we enjoyed the views of Table Mountain from the Waterfront.

All in all, it was an awesome trip!