Enw //

Fatma Büşra Algeç (Bee)

Ymarfer(ion) creadigol //

Musician/Youth Leader/Facilitator

Dywedwch wrthym am eich gwaith yn gyffredinol a'ch prosiectau/ymarferion diweddar//

I work as a youth leader and project facilitator in Erasmus+ projects which are organized by the European Commision. Erasmus+ Exchanges are short-term, non-formal learning events where young people from different countries collaborate on a shared project for a defined period. Training courses, on the other hand, are professional development opportunities for youth workers, focused on skill enhancement and networking. My responsibilities are crafting clear, concise, and persuasive proposals that outline project goals, methods, and budget management as well as working with other NPOs, project leaders, and administrators to ensure a comprehensive collaboration between various countries across the globe - mostly Europe. When/if the projects get approved, I am responsible for curating workshops and agenda as a response to the issue that our project targets. This entails selecting the 30-40 participants who will be attending the workshop during the project (7-10 days) to, delivering the workshops designed in correspondence to our group of participants' needs.Here is the list of some recent projects I was involved in:

• -Play for European Values 2023: The project aims to raise awareness against discrimination stemming from cultural,geographical,economical and educational differences, through various workshops designed to understand the universality of music which ultimately helps young people to develop critical thinking, creativity and to broaden their perspective.
• Get the fake off 2024 Austria: Raising awareness amongst young people about how to distinguish news about immigration,propaganda of various issues,islamophobia...etc from the fake ones by encouraging critical thinking in daily life through creative workshops.
• Vanishing Islands -St Maarten/Caribbean 2024 : Learning sustainable practices as well as promoting sustainable tourism in the area of Caribbean where many islands are at the risk of vanishing due to climate change.Collaboration with local farms,diving centers and NPOs.
• Harmony for Sustainable Growth The Netherlands 2024: Using the techniques of Theatre of Oppressed in the field of youth work to promote inclusion,creating a safe environment where participants can tell their own story in various forms of theatre.

Sut wnaethoch chi ddechrau eich llwybr i'r hyn rydych chi'n ei wneud nawr? //

When I was 18, I started studying Industrial Engineering in Istanbul/Turkey, then did Erasmus in Poland,lived and worked India for a bit and moved to Korea for a year to finish my bachelor's degree and to learn Korean.These experiences surely taught me things academically/professionally but my interest in life has always been meeting and intertwining my experience/knowledge with others. Like the roots of trees transiting knowledge and wisdom. Maybe that's why I quit my job and started backpacking for a while.

Over the years I realized that I’m better at talking with people than solving four unknown algebra equations or marketing/sales. This journey took me a few years of backpacking around 35 countries and meeting countless people, listening to their stories and comprehending the fact that there is so much to learn,so many stories to be told and so many issues the world and people have that need to be addressed. That's why when I got back to Turkey my friend and I established an association, started developing projects which would get funded by the European Commission for community development and youth empowerment. I started delivering/developing multiple projects addressing various social causes and build our association called Youth Eurasia Development Association by collaborating organizations across the world.As a facilitator the principles I have developed are, performing according to key elements of effective learning of young people including respect & understanding the different learning needs/styles as well as seizing the "teachable moment" opportunities.

After this journey and straight after having finished my bachelor's, I came to the UK for the last internship I had to do, just 4 weeks before the first lockdown hit. While everything was getting crazy I naively thought that things were gonna go back to normal in a few months. However little did I know that my friend Tia from Wales whom I met at a park randomly would take me to Wales for a road trip and this place would become my home. Right after the roadtrip I found a job at a restaurant and decided to stay in Wales and the second lockdown hit but this time I was absolutely on my own in a totally strange land.

Out of the blue one day during lockdown I decided to buy a flute and learn something new. I never knew I was musical,creative or had interest in music. I did not know the flute was going to change my life. It introduced me to "art" hence deeper connection with feelings in general, human interaction on a higher level, looking at things from a different perspective, understanding the interconnectedness better and these things are not only for the sake of my self-expression but also because it opened up so many different pathways for me to apply it in my work which is facilitating workshops for empowerment of young people,people with less opportunity,addressing social causes in the hope of creating a bigger picture where everyone can see themselves as a functioning part of the society. Having been introduced to creativity in a different perspective contributed loads to the way I navigate a discussion session, workshop or a training.

I think none of these would have happened if I didn't come to Wales for a road trip and got trapped here -or if the car didn't break down :) This place not only feels like home but magical as it's bustling with creativity, music and kindness.

My creative journey has only accelerated after lockdown thanks to a local open-mic initiative called Elevator Club by a friend. I met my friend Evan at one of the open mic nights with whom we'd form our Turkish folk duo band called "Destan Dönemi" later. The intricate Celtic melodies he was playing sounded just like home and I asked him to do some old Turkish folk songs together and now after a year and half we have performed in various venues in Cardiff, West Wales and a few festivals. For me it is still something really hard to comprehend as I had never been musical or didn't even know I could sing until the open mic nights.

I again think it's thanks to the creativity Wales has to offer which brought out my own creativity. Now we are in the process of writing our original songs which blend the ancient melodies of Middle Eastern music with a Western/Celtic touch.

Sut mae cydweithio a chymuned yn dylanwadu ar eich gwaith? //

My work in the creative industry and outside the creative industry -Erasmus+ projects...etc- thrives on collaboration. I firmly believe that as a species if there is one thing we are really good at is working collaboratively for a better future -or survival, some anthropologist or biologist would call- Creating meaningful relationships/collaborations are the most important key to our survival if you look at the grand scheme of things. Simply put, we would not be able to survive if we were on our own or the isolation/loneliness would kill us -mentally and literally- However because of the societal structure and how Western countries influenced the whole world to follow the "individualism movement" led our communities (I am also considering the change in the communities we have back home in Turkey too) to a completely different story. I think as a species we started to focus more on our daily problems (which is great,there is nothing wrong with trying to become a better version of yourself, that's not the issue. If anything it is the meaning of life) rather than the collective issues, even simple as the issues our friends/neighbours are going through (consider yourself lucky if you know your neighbour really well) or in the bigger picture; asking the big question: what's behind all the struggle and pain in the world? Is it institutions,governments or our ancient minds trying to keep up with the modernity of the society we trapped overselves aka naked monkeys in?

And when this is combined with consumerism the meaning of life or individuals is lowered to a very shallow self-centered view of life whereas it should have been the life that was in the center. This ultimately creates this big gap between people where individuals fall into the trap of isolation and feeling disconnected with their surroundings and I feel like -my humble overview of recent events- this sense of isolation is the biggest threat to us. Because it makes us numb to other struggles in the world.

I am not claiming that my work is not about me or saying that one's work shouldn't be about themselves but what I am trying to say is solely "me this, me that, me, me..." won't create a community around what's been said in that piece. I envision my work - especially at this stage with my music - to turn into something in which everyone can find a piece from themselves in the lyrics,melody... or add something from themselves to make it relatable for others.

Collaboration does not only mean working together with someone but becoming someone different at the end,rejoining our paths to navigate our directions into somewhere else.That's why I go for "I am a little bit of many things but in reality, nothing" to describe myself because I believe one becomes "something" when working with other people.

Beth ydych chi'n ei garu am y sector creadigol yng Nghymru? //

The fact that there are many different forms of creativity and compared to the little town I lived in, there is more support for people to reach a wider audience. Not just governmental support but support of small communities. The fact that there are so many open mics still blows my mind. Every time I go to a different one, the different forms of creativity and self-expression in people draws a picture which I have never been able to see in my own homeland. This might be one of the reasons why Wales is the first place I have never felt "hiraeth".

- Ble arall allwn ni ddod o hyd i chi? //

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