Join the Children’s Culture and Literature Network in Finland
Support multilingual families and their children through an open and free partnership platform
The Children’s Culture Diversity and Literature Network is a peer-to-peer network to co-produce accessible, free, open, and safer spaces for newly arrived and multilingual families.
After years of collaborating with various associations and cultural actors, the Network took shape in 2023, securing financial support from Moniheli ry to carry out different projects and events.
Join an open and free partnership platform between multicultural organizations, libraries, universities, storytellers, multidisciplinary artists with diverse background among other stakeholders.
Goals and values of the Network
The collaborative Network’s main goal is to work together, learn and read together, providing support to multilingual families and their children. We believe this support is essential to sustain their minority heritage languages, their well-being, and their sense of belonging in the Finnish society.
With that aim, we work together connecting skills, talents and resources, developing genuine partnership to:
- Facilitate reading mediation events and other multicultural encounters for children and their families, and for young people.
- Exchange best practices, share experiences, and cultivate fresh perspectives on addressing the challenges confronting families and newcomers in Finland.
- Co-produce cultural events for families and their children, or other antiracism events.
- Host training sessions for professionals and people interested in children’s culture.
How to be a member of the Children’s Culture Diversity and Literature Network in Finland
We usually hold online or in-person meetings throughout the year to share agendas, knowledge, and co-produce events.
Joining the Network is free and only takes a couple of minutes! Fill out this form, and we’ll get in touch with you to join the next meeting.
Check out some active members of the Network!
Take a look at some cultural events produced by members of the Network in 2023 and 2024
Multinlingual storytelling sessions, workshops, concerts and seminars with over 1800 attendees
‘Multilingual Storytelling Marathon‘ on Helsinki Päivä 2023 at STOA
Families could enjoy storytelling in 8 languages (English, Persian, Portuguese, Somali, Spanish, Turkish, Ukrainian, and Selkokieli) thanks to a collaboration between associations and institutions.
Seminar-Networking: ‘Strategies to diversify children’s books’ at Oodi
Literature expert and reading mediator, Ivonne Carlos, facilitated this seminar to support reading practices in heritage languages, and develop skills for reading mediation. In collaboration with POC-lukupiiri and Cooperative 3E.
2023 FALA x Kunda Kids Culture Day Experience at Pasila Library
The Network collaborated in the first FALA x Kunda Kids Culture Day Experience on 19.8.2023, with storytelling sessions in Spanish and Portuguese, celebrating BIPOC literature.
Reading Together – Storytelling Marathons in Spanish and Portuguese
A marathon of storytelling sessions in Spanish and Portuguese at Oodi Library (Helsinki) on 9.3.2024. In collaboration with 14 Ibero American Embassies and institutions in Finland like Instituto Guimarães Rosa Helsinque, Camões and the association APPF.
Panel ‘Children’s Literature, Hospitality, and Refuge‘ at Vuotalo Cultural Centre
During Kolibrí Festivaali 2023, creators, cultural workers, researchers and writers such as Katri Tapola, discussed about the creativity process in children’s culture sector. Read more about this event.
Celebration of International Children Book Day 2024 at Oodi Library
More than 1000 people enjoyed this beautiful event, with multilingual storytelling session in 13 languages, workshops, and concerts. For the first time we had musicians from the Global Music Department of the University of the Arts Helsinki.
The creation of this Network has made possible online panels, like the one created on May 2024 for our project Lukupesä – Learning Together. ‘Communities agency and Newcomers: how can public spaces support integration?’ reflected on how public spaces can support integration and migrants agency in Finland. Read more.
In 2024, we created the Ninho Library section on our website in collaboration with Cooperative 3E. Each month, literature expert Ivonne Carlos publishes reading suggestions for children’s books, most of which are included in the Ninho Book Program. Check it out.