Changemakers: Change Z Podcast

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Last year, the Derby County Community Trust local action group came together to hash out a plan for their project. As they took a stroll through a nearby market, they overheard someone saying “okay boomer” and got to talking about this trend that was, at the time, making its way all over social media platforms. They realised that even though it was a pretty funny meme, it actually showed a glaring disparity between the younger and older generations.

And they wanted to do something about this.

They said, “we realised there was a disconnect, and we wanted to bring light to issues faced by Generation Z and share our experiences. So we chose a format accessible to both age groups - a podcast - to attempt to heal the divide.”

And so the Change Z podcast was created. The group has been able to get together a few times - once in person, when lockdown restrictions had been lifted - and twice more through the power of Zoom, to film podcast episodes. 

“We designed the podcast to talk about our experience around different subjects. Our first three releases have been about coronavirus and Christmas celebrations (A Covid Christmas), online education (Learning in Lockdown) and the LGBT+ community (Let’s Talk LGBT+)” the team explained. 

And it’s a real team effort! With a team of more than twenty people, they’ve all taken part in hosting the podcast, attending planning meetings, choosing what topics to discuss, editing, cultivating a social media following, and participating in overall decision making. 

“My favourite part is definitely filming the podcasts and all the fun we have doing that!” said Gracie. Alex enjoys “hearing about different perspectives on various topics, and gaining experience both in front of and behind the camera.” And for Taranpeet, the joy comes from “working with a great team and having a lot of fun, and raising awareness for issues we’re passionate about!”

The Change Z podcast aims to impact relations between young people and older generations. “We hope to get our voices heard and increase the levels of understanding and empathy for other perspectives on life” the team said. 

Tune into Give Change Z on all the normal streaming platforms, and give them a follow on their Insta!

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