Change Starts with Slovo

From Mariupol, Ukraine, to owning a beauty salon in the heart of Prague, and finally to the Czech language courses at Slovo 21. My colleague Yuliia and I visited Tamara Krutko right in her studio.

The Slovo 21 project, titled Strengthening Intercultural Competencies, helped civil servants better understand people from different cultural backgrounds and manage the situations they encounter in their work. The project concludes this August. In this interview, Kateřina Kopečná, the project's lead methodologist, discusses the project's progress, her experience as a trainer, and why there is no universal guide to communicating with others.

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At Slovo 21, we are constantly learning, adapting to new challenges, and looking for ways to do our work as well as possible. Organizational development is a long-term journey that begins with individual employees and their skills. It also concerns the way we communicate with each other and with the outside world.

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The "We Are on the Long Way" summer school is an opportunity for young Roma to meet, spend time together, and learn more about Romani history, culture, and ways to stand up against antigypsyism. Marlon attended as a participant last year, and this year he returned as an assistant.

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Artist and tattooist Alex Dzurko explores Romani identity, history, and memory in his work. His exhibition When Numbers Cry commemorates the fates of Romani victims of Nazism and opens a dialogue on why it is important not to forget.

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Slovo 21 has long supported young people and children on their education journey. Our collaboration with the organization People in Need has given us the opportunity to offer them a helping hand through direct and practical assistance. Today, institutional education is almost impossible without a computer. We have now been able to deliver electronics where they are needed most.

The Survivors' Stories program by Slovo 21 revisited one of the darkest chapters of Romani history: the Holocaust. Through theatrical performances, exhibitions, and educational programs, it sought to confront historical events that we must not forget. This time, the program is not being reviewed by the organizers or lecturers, but by those for whom it was created—the students.

A new beginning brings with it many questions and uncertainties. That is why, through the project Your New Home in the Czech Republic, we helped people with international protection find their way around the Czech Republic. Open communication, handled with sensitivity and empathy, often played a key role on the path to integration. As did the opportunity to ask about anything.

Who am I and where do I belong? For many Romani children growing up in children's homes, these questions are far from straightforward. They lack contact with their families, their own history, and their culture. This is why the organization Slovo 21 created the Khamoro Kher project, which allows them to experience Khamoro — the largest Romani festival in the world.