Fund Bangkok Univ. student project at Intl. Science Festival

Welcome to our fundraiser! We are two university teachers – one in Gothenburg, Sweden and one in Bangkok, Thailand -- who have been working collaboratively with over 110 performing arts undergraduates at Bangkok University on a social inclusiveness art project. Throughout autumn 2024, students worked in groups to develop public activities calling attention to the everyday social and economic challenges in Thai society: homelessness, low wages, economic struggles faced by street vendors, challenges experienced by the Thai deaf community, difficulties faced by young Thai employees in their first jobs, the exploitation of unpaid interns in the entertainment industry, the lack of developed policies to help stray cats and dogs, and much more.

In November 2024, we held a workshop teaching the students how to take the key messages from their public activities and transform these into zines: do-it-yourself publications that are self-made, self-published and self-circulated. Zines have historically been used by grassroots social groups for sharing stories about important social issues and to encourage others to become informed and engaged. They are an ideal tool to help the students reach even broader audiences in Thailand (and also abroad!) with the powerful messages that they have to share about these important issues.

We are now raising funds to cover the costs for producing 100 copies of the printed zine for distribution free of charge, to allow two students from the class to travel to Gothenburg, Sweden in April, 2025 to take part in an exhibition of the project at the Gothenburg (Sweden) International Science Festival, and to prepare the exhibition materials. This festival is one of the largest annual popular science festivals in Europe, with over 50,000 visitors annually.

Donations will be spent on scanning of the original pages, printing and distribution of the zine, preparation of the exhibition materials, plus round-trip economy class airfare for two students from Bangkok to Gothenburg, their accommodation for six nights in a shared double room and a single room for the instructor from University of Bangkok, plus eventual Swedish taxes. Any additional funds will be earmarked for working with students taking the course in autumn 2025 to produce, distribute and exhibit a new zine. At this phase, our goal is approximately $8,800 USD (94 000 Swedish kronor).

Thank you in advance for any contribution you can make. It means a lot to us, and to the students.

Gregg Bucken-Knapp (University of Gothenburg) & Rubkwan Thammaboosadee (Bangkok University)

Sample pages from the zine, pictures from the workshop, student reflections on the project, and more information are below!

Panthita Chuduong discusses how she developed a better understanding of urban homelessness in Bangkok as a result of the project

Niratchaporn Khongplan talks about her group’s project, “Today for Livelihood”, focusing on economic and other challenges faced by street vendors in Bangkok

Alina Mittelman talks about her group’s project, “First Jobber Journey”, which helps audiences better understand the difficulties that come along with entering the work force after university

Nuchjira Thumrongsuk talks about her group’s project, “Urban Mediator”, which sheds light on homelessness in Bangkok

First pages from several of the student groups

Photos from the zine-making workshop

Students at the workshop discussing how rewarding the project experience was

Thank you again for your support!!