The first team of DEIS UK Volunteers

The 2nd of August is an interesting day for me. Six years ago, in 2017, I had pulled my first allnighter (from the 1st to the 2nd). The first time I stayed 48 hours without sleep. It was because I was at the Youth Centre, working with two other volunteers from DEIS Ro to write subtitles for an episode of Urban Context (DEIS’s show) about an international conference.

Today we had our first meeting with the first team of DEIS UK Volunteers. Not everyone could make it in person, but we managed to get the internet to cooperate for a short while at least. It was an amazing first meeting. We have such a wide breadth of experiences - different people with different backgrounds coming together to create Arts in the Streets. Our focus was for everyone to know the others and to start brainstorming ideas in order to shape a common vision for the festival.

I can’t believe that almost SEVEN years ago, I was sitting down on a blue chair at the Baia Mare Youth Centre discussing Music in the Streets with a team of young people I’ve never met. Today, we sat down on the sofas at Artfix Woolwich to discuss Arts in the Streets with a team of young volunteers.