empatía

Trillargento is a community-based music program founded in Genoa, Italy, that explores how ensemble music practice can foster social inclusion, personal growth, and cultural participation. Over the years, we’ve grown into a multi-layered ecosystem of ensembles, each responding to a specific need but together forming a single educational journey that integrates musical development with social and emotional learning.

In the North Kivu Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the capital city of Goma sits between several mining towns and valuable minerals. Part of an active volcanic region rich in resources, the city serves as an essential transport hub for the nation—and, more importantly, as home to nearly 2 million people, many of whom have been displaced.

This past year, those 2 million have lived through extraordinarily difficult circumstances as the rebel group known as M23—the March 23 Movement—took control of the city. But perhaps none are more affected than the children. Over 2,000 schools in the region have been closed, with many thousands of students displaced and forced to witness the horrors of war, including the deaths of loved ones. As the fighting continues, these young people have been increasingly isolated and ignored, left without opportunities to connect with one another, explore their feelings, and celebrate joy.

And yet, as Workshop Leader Rene Byamungu writes, joy has persisted in North Kivu through music:

Para muchas organizaciones ajenas a nuestra comunidad común, el liderazgo se considera un título o una función formal, algo a lo que aspirar profesionalmente. Sin embargo, cuando se trata de la capacitación de los jóvenes, significa algo más. Lo vemos en las acciones, hábitos y mentalidades cotidianas que capacitan a las personas para marcar la diferencia. Para nosotros, el liderazgo consiste en inspirar a los demás simplemente viviendo tus valores.

En Enabling Leadership (EL), nos esforzamos por apoyar a los jóvenes en su camino hacia esas acciones y valores.

Son las 3:30 de la tarde de un miércoles en el Zona Neutralun centro de artes creativas y liderazgo para adolescentes en el centro de Ann Arbor, Michigan. Veinticuatro jóvenes y seis empleados se reúnen en un círculo de sillas en el B-Side Venue (un espacio polivalente que también sirve como sala de conciertos para 400 personas). Mientras una bola de discoteca brilla en lo alto, Ash, participante adolescente y estudiante de segundo de bachillerato, se ofrece voluntario con una pregunta inicial: "¿Qué te gustaba hacer en el recreo cuando eras niño en el colegio?".