As part of the competition #CedefopPhotoAward 2017, groups of European vocational school students were invited to depict their experiences in the form of photo stories. The exhibition presents the works that were awarded the first and second prize, as well as the 18 runners-up in the competition, which was organized by Cedefop, the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (www.cedefop.europa.eu), located in Thessaloniki, under the auspices of the European Commission. The exhibition is organized by Cedefop and curated by TIFF and Cedefop.
Being the first to speak, Mrs Jalladeau welcomed the Cedefop team and the winners of the competition, and stressed the fact that these pictures were created collectively, by groups of people, praising the schools’ initiative and noting that this is exactly what is happening in the Festival. “Teamwork is a key to success”, she underlined.
Consequently, Cedefop’s Chair of the Governing Board Tatjana Babrauskiene, said that it consists of representatives of the 28 member states of the European Union. She also stressed that this particular competition is awarding young, and not only young participants, in collaboration with TIFF for a second year in a row, and includes a visit to Thessaloniki as part of the 58th TIFF, as well as a trip to Brussels, where the European Vocational Skills Week (20-24 November 2017) will take place.
The photo exhibition «#CedefopPhotoAward: Youth education and training” presents five photos by each winning group along with a small narrative on the students’ education and training experience.
Mrs Babrauskiene stressed that 78 education and training centres from all over Europe took part in the competition; that is 376 group members, of whom about 20% were aged over 30. Lithuania was the first prize winner of the competition.
After the award ceremony, it was the winners’ turn to speak. They thanked the committee and the Festival for the invitation, particularly noting the team spirit marking their work, which was characterized as “outright collective”, the self-confidence they acquired through the competition, and the strong friendships that they developed both between them and with their teachers.
