Street papers from the U.S., Serbia, Finland, Australia and the U.K. will come together in the next few weeks for International Network of Street Papers’ new Intensive Learning Program, or ILP.
The ILP allows street paper leaders to undertake a week-long placement at a well-established street paper, observing and learning about key areas of street paper operations and development.
The program was announced late last year, and 20 street papers in 13 countries expressed an interest. Six papers will take part in the first round of placements.
In April, Street Roots will welcome Ranya O’Connor and Marty Peercy from The Curbside Chronicle, Oklahoma City.
“It is a privilege as a young street paper to get the chance to learn from a well-established paper like Street Roots,” Ranya said. “We’ve admired the work of Street Roots for some time now and hope that we can learn and incorporate some of their best practices to strengthen our program back in Oklahoma.
“If it wasn’t for the generosity of INSP and the willingness of street papers around the U.S. to share their knowledge and guidance with us, I don’t think Curbside would have come to fruition in Oklahoma.
“Being a part of this network of support gives us hope that our paper can one day grow to imitate the success of papers like Street Roots, The Contributor (Nashville), Real Change (Seattle), and other inspirations in the street paper community. Thanks for making this trip possible!”
“The exchange of ideas and best practice is at the core of what we do and we hope this new programm will continue to build the capacity and effectiveness of street papers,” INSP’s Zoe Greenfield said.
“We’re looking forward to hearing about the placements once complete and sharing new resources with the rest of the network.”
Recently, representatives from Iso Numero in Finland traveled to Australia to spend a week with The Big Issue in Melbourne.
“Iso Numero recently celebrated its fifth anniversary, and as the pioneering Finnish street paper, it’s often been a rocky journey of trial and error. Our brief contacts with more experienced street papers have always been an invaluable source of ideas, support and motivation,” said Iso Numero Managing Editor Janne Hukka.
Earlier this month, a representative from Liceulice, the street paper in Serbia, traveled to Manchester, England, to spend a week with Big Issue North.
The ILP is set to continue later this year with a German language placement, hosted by Swiss street paper Surprise.
Courtesy of INSP.ngo