For another consecutive year, the Hellenic Film & Audiovisual Center (H.F.A.C.)- Creative Greece participates in the celebrations of the 13th UNESCO Global Media and Information Literacy Week from October 24 to 31, under the theme “The new digital frontiers of information: Media and Information Literacy for public-interest information”. This annual UNESCO institution, which has been operating since 2012, and approved in 2019 by 193 countries as a focal point for all stakeholders around the world to raise awareness, highlight and celebrate the progress made towards ‘Media and Information Literacy for All’. Within the Week, the feature conference hosted by UNESCO and the Hashemite Kingdom takes place on 30-31 October 2024 in Amman, Jordan, focusing on the transformative impact of emerging technologies such as Generative Artificial Intelligence and the new generation of digital content creators on the production and dissemination of public-interest information, highlighting both opportunities and risks. The conference also will underline the need to empower users with tailored skills to identify, assess and engage with public-interest information online. Register to watch the conference online here:
Hellenic Film & Audiovisual Center as an active member of UNESCO Media and Information Literacy Alliance since 2018 (as EKOME) and coordinator of its Euro-Mediterranean SubChapter, proudly participates, as every year, in the Week organizing and promoting relevant initiatives and actions on Media and Information Literacy.
New Blueprint on Media and Creative Literacy in Education
Hellenic Film & Audiovisual Center (H.F.A.C.) – Creative Greece designs and elaborates the Blueprint on Media and Creative Literacy in Education, as a National Strategy that will be submitted for approval and adoption by the relevant Ministries, the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Education, Sports and Religious Affairs.
Through a set of measures for boosting audiovisual, digital literacy and cultural creativity in schools, the National Strategy will strengthen the cultivation of critical skills of analysis, use and ethical management of image and content in the digital media. In addition, through professional training and lifelong learning actions, the National Strategy will support and strengthen the know-how and specialization for high-skilled human resources in the Creative and Cultural Industries.
H.F.A.C. – Creative Greece endorses the European Guidelines for Media Literacy EDMO
cy published on October 21, 2024, by the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO). The Guidelines form an axis for evaluating the effectiveness of media literacy projects and actions across Europe, at the stages of development, delivery and review.
According to the CEO of H.F.A.C. – Creative Greece, Leonida Christopoulo, “in the era of digital convergence, Creative Greece embraces EDMO’s Guidelines for effective media literacy initiatives, as they not only establish a global framework for developing actions and measuring impact but also underscore the significance of the “power of joining forces” by the key EU players in the digital and creative industries. The Guidelines are based on 12 Principles on the effectiveness of Media Literacy projects and actions across Europe, at the stages of development, delivery and review. They are designed for use by anyone involved in the development of media literacy initiatives – civil society, educators, policy makers, those in the media or tech industries.
Download the Guidelines here
H.F.A.C. – Creative Greece joins the EU Media Literacy Expert Group
Creative Greece is now the national delegate at the EU Media Literacy Expert Group, the European group by DG Connect of the European Commission. The mission of the group is the support and contribution of the EU Member States in the formation of the European policy for Media Literacy, a dynamic concept that is constantly evolving at the same time as technology and society. The agency is represented by Creative Hub GR through the national experts, Irene Andriopoulou and Anna Kasimati.
The 5th International Student Competition for Board and Digital Games Design is on the way!
This creative competition, with significant appeal to the educational community is to be announced by H.F.A.C.-Creative Greece for the 5th year in a row! Students from primary and secondary schools in Greece, Cyprus, and the Greek Diaspora will be encouraged to design an original educational board game or digital game, inspired by a school subject of their choice. The competition aims to promote game-based learning and encourage collaborative activities within the school environment. The 5th International Student Competition for Board and Digital Games Design is organized by H.F.A.C.-Creative Greece, in cooperation with the Ministry of Digital Governance, Department of Communication, Media, and Culture of Panteion University, the Faculty of Education for Preschool Teachers of the University of Athens, the Hellenic Union of Graphic Arts and Media Technology, the Union of Information and Communication Engineers of Greece and is under the auspices of the Secretary General for Greeks Abroad and Public Diplomacy of the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
Audiovisual and Film Education Workshops at 12th Chania Film Festival
H.F.A.C. – Creative Greece had a strong presence again this year with three special audiovisual and film literacy workshops at the 12th Chania Film Festival. The two successful experiential media and digital literacy workshops for elementary and high school children “Are you In (the Media)?”, the workshop from the Digital Film Platform for Schools-CINEDU for teacher’s training into the optimal use of the platform in school curriculum and a new, original workshop on the methodological approach of a film in the classroom based on the three fields of action, 3Cs – Creative , Critical, Cultural – by the Creative Hub GR, the new agency of Creative Greece.
A new three-year operational cycle for the “National Network on Media Literacy Network” 2024-2027
The National Thematic Network of Schools “Media Literacy: Television, Internet, Cinema” is entering a new three-year operational cycle 2024-2027, starting with an inaugural online event on October 31. Approximately 70 schools and 200 teachers from primary and secondary education, both general and special education, in Greece and the Greek Diaspora will participate again this year in the pedagogical and educational activities of the Network, which aims to cultivate audiovisual and digital literacy among students and promote media education within the Greek educational system. In the previous three-year cycle, over 400 educators and more than 200 schools participated, implementing activities in their classrooms and creating original and diverse digital, media, and cinematic materials. The Network is coordinated by H.F.A.C.-Creative Greece, the Primary Education Directorate of Serres and the Department of Educational RadioTelevision and Digital Media of the Ministry of Education.
QYourself, new program for young people and information in the Media
H.F.A.C. – Creative Greece participated as expert in the international meeting and educational seminars of the ERASMUS+ project “Q Yourself”, co-organized by the Universidad Del Pais Vasco, as project leader, on October 9-10, 2024 in Bilbao, Spain. The focus of the project is to create an open Handbook for Media Literacy in lifelong learning with an emphasis on critical evaluation and decoding of information and image. The project consortium also includes Iberika Education Group Ggmbh (Iberika), Germany, CESIE, Italy, X Liceum, Poland, MALDITA.ES, Spain and Stimmuli for Social Change, Greece, with the aim of cultivating critical cognitive skills through the creation of multiple manuals on media literacy for different user groups.
New Teacher Training Cycle in collaboration with the 2nd PE.K.E.S. of Attica
Following last year’s successful collaboration, in which 280 teachers participated in 8 experiential workshops on inclusive film literacy, H.F.A.C.-Creative Greece is once again responding to the call of the 2nd Regional Educational Planning Centre of Attica for the implementation of a new cycle of training activities. On 30/10 and 1/11, the opening experiential workshops will be held, based on the program “And Yet… We Move,” focusing on the use of animated films in the educational process.
The program, a result of our collaboration with the French organization Films pour enfants, includes twelve award-winning short animation films for children aged 4 to 15, accompanied by rich educational material. So far, 1,360 teachers and parents from Greece and abroad have registered for the program, to implement it with more than 53,000 children.