About The Podcast
Our Podcast
Spread voices – listen – create
Aswatona Podcast is a key component of the Aswatona Project – a non-profit educational initiative aimed at supporting and empowering podcasters in the West Asia and North Africa (WANA) region, and beyond. Aswatona Podcast is the product of the hard work of our talented participants and our supporting cast of mentors and experts.
Our Means
Podcasts are available everywhere - all the time
Podcasts are easily accessible for a wide audience, promoting diverse perspectives and amplifying marginalized voices. They are the outcome of a creative process and a deep-down diving into a topic. With every podcast, the podcaster expands a range of skills, that can be reused in different situations and projects. So, on the one hand, podcasting promotes the voice and agenda of the podcaster. On the other hand, it shapes and supports a culture of public information and discussion, which leads to a more inclusive, stable, and equal society, aligned with the goals of SDG 16.
Our Main Themes
Thinking together – pushing boundaries
In a first round of Aswatona Podcast in 2021, we already published 12 episodes about the topics of gender, power dynamics, and environment. In 2023 we concentrate intensely on gender and its intersections with a geographical focus on: Iraq, Yemen, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia, Lebanon, Egypt, Libya, Sudan, Algeria, and Germany.
But why Germany? Well, first of all we want to implement an exchange and support of intercultural competence between podcasters from Arabic-, German-, and English-speaking countries. Secondly, in our opinion West Asia and North Africa are still imagined too one-dimensional in the old colonizing countries. We are convinced that podcasting helps to create a multi-dimensional picture of the region and to break with stereotypes. Our codex is a feminist, anti-racist, and postcolonial approach to world’s realities. We are ready to watch, learn, understand, search, wonder, and roll everything up, over and over again.
Our Ambition
Twine the meshes to tie a strong network
Aswatona Podcast provides a platform for our workshop participants to develop their skills in podcast production, share their unique perspectives on important issues, and engage in intercultural exchange and collaboration. At the same time, to us, this podcast is a step toward our long-run intentions.
Intra-twining: get people closer
The episodes of Aswatona are produced in transnational teams, which means that every team consists of two to three participants from various countries in WANA. By this, we draw attention to the differences and similarities of the region and aim in the long run to overcome disparities within and between the countries (SDG 10). We also aim to strengthen women’s voices and support their personal and professional development (SDG 5), so at least 60 % of our participants are women.
Public information in terms of a high quality, diverse audio journalism and podcasting is the base of an inclusive, stable, and equal society. Through podcast training and exchange within our network we support our podcasters in this field (SDG 16).
Inter-twining: let people listen
The episodes are translated and dubbed into German and English, in order to make the voices of our participants accessible to a world’s broader public. Especially in the former colonizing and intervening countries of the region, we aim to multiply stories to break with the often one-dimensional picture of WANA. We work for a greater exchange between these regions and powerful voices from WANA in German- and English-speaking countries.
Engage and encourage
The Aswatona Podcast is available on the website and all major platforms. Also, we’d like to invite you to interact! Our network aims to bring people together, learn from and inspire each other, profit from collective interest, knowledge, and energy. You are warmly welcome to engage on our social media pages for a vivid exchange!