826 is a global movement that goes beyond just our nine chapters. All over the world, organizations inspired by the 826 model and approach work to champion young voices and inspire young people to write. Today, there are over 70 826-inspired organizations that are united in a shared mission to work for and support over 767,000 young writers around the world. We are a movement that is creating real change for young people in the communities we serve.
For the first time since 2018, 826 National and 25 826-inspired organizations gathered in Edinburgh, Scotland at this year’s Writing Our World (WOW) conference in Edinburgh, Scotland to connect, share learnings, and strengthen our practices to better serve students everywhere.
“After so long apart (thanks Covid!), the conference is a good time for us to come together as a network, learn from one another and offer each other advice and support where and when we can,” shared Gerald Richards, CEO of Super Power Agency and WOW Conference host.
Throughout the conference, participants found new inspirations from one other and from stories about their students:
- At Story Planet in Toronto, students wrote fictional stories set in their own real-life neighborhood, then recorded and published them as a walking tour!
- Students at W*ORT in Lustenau, Austria led an award-winning collaborative fiction project with over 100 students across Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Italy and Moldova.
- Students at Fronte del Borgo in Turin created a medieval bestiary inspired by the Codex Seraphinianus.
- In Sydney, Australia, former student Vivian Pham wrote her first novella at Story Factory in 2017 and is now their inaugural partner author!
We’re honored to be a part of this global community in protecting, uplifting, and amplifying student voices all over the world as outlined in 2018’s “A Collective Belief Statement from the International Youth Writing Community”:
This global movement continues to grow and, together, we are committed to amplifying the words of young people and ensuring their access to programs offering space to explore the power, joy, and creative possibility of writing.
Thank you to Super Power Agency for hosting and helping plan the conference and to the Hawthornden Foundation for sponsoring the WOW Conference. We’re amazed by all the incredible work from 826-inspired organizations and young people worldwide and look forward to continuing to work alongside them!