Integrarti Festival, together with Inizjamed and the Port Regional Council, celebrated their artistic and literary collaboration through a launch event, readings, and a publication. This collaboration has embraced the linguistic and cultural diversity within our communities, while giving people of all ages the opportunity to express themselves through storytelling.

The literary branch of Integrarti Festival included a series of writing and storytelling workshops throughout the month of October at Ħaż-Żabbar A Primary School, as well as at the St Joseph Home for the Elderly in Fgura. Through these activities, children and older residents created collective stories that reflect the varied experiences, languages, and cultures present within these two communities.

The final publication takes the form of a large poster that can be folded into a cootie catcher - a creative and interactive medium that brings the stories to life in an unconventional way. The excerpts will also be accessible in different languages through a dedicated link, giving a new dimension to this project of inclusion and community interaction. The publication was designed by Naomi Gatt.

During the workshops, the children used their imagination to write stories about sweet and mischievous characters, while the elderly revisited the past to recount precious memories dating back to the time of the War. The children's writing workshops were led by Kit Azzopardi and Justine Somerville, while the elderly's writing workshops were led by Claudia Gauci and Priscilla Cassar. The literary branch of the project was coordinated by Leanne Ellul on behalf of Inizjamed, as part of the Integrarti Festival, whose Artistic Directors are Joseph Galea and Francesca Zammit. Veronika Mercieca managed the project on behalf of the Port Regional Council.

Joseph Galea, one of the Artistic Directors of the initiative, said: "Integrarti Festival was instrumental this year in enabling artists from different communities to collaborate and share their talents in various initiatives across the localities of the Port Region. This Region has recognised that integration not only helps different people feel that they belong to the place where they live, but also adds value to cultural activities that already exist locally."

The closing of the project and the official launch of the publication was held on Thursday, 27 November, at 10:30am at St Joseph Home, Fgura. During the event, the children from Ħaż-Żabbar A Primary School and the elderly participants in the project came together for an event that celebrates their stories. Leanne Ellul, the Artistic Director of Inizjamed and the coordinator of the literature strand within this project, said that for her, "it is something truly special that at the end of this project the different generations will be coming together." She added that "this is not the first time that Inizjamed has led projects of this kind, and it continues to do so, and will keep doing so because it sees great value in them; they are a way for literature and storytelling to reach different audiences and, through them, for those same audiences to become the protagonists. It is also a way for children to learn in a different environment and not associate writing with something tedious or compulsory. In the case of the elderly, it gives value to their priceless experience."

This intergenerational exchange demonstrates how art and literature can serve as a bridge for conversation and mutual respect, while strengthening the sense of community, inclusion, and creativity. For more information about Integrarti Festival and its activities, one may visit the official pages of Integrarti or Inizjamed.