Every summer politicians, civil society and NGO’s gather on the island of Gotland to advocate on different issues. The Swedish guides and Scouts chose to contribute in a way we know best: we hosted an evening discussion around the campfire at the Östersjö shore.
The topic for the talk was natural for us; how we all can strengthen children’s and young people’s self-esteem and body confidence. 65 people huddled in blankets listened to how we are using Free Being Me in Sweden, and contributed to the talk around the campfire.
The panel included young people sharing their strong stories on how it feels to have low self-esteem and feel like an ‘outsider’ for not following the Image Myth.
The Swedish Child ombudsman was also on the panel and pointed out the responsibility that adults have in creating strong self-esteem in the next generation. A fruitful discussion followed on what we all can do to strengthen the self-esteem for youth and children and how we can listen and involve children in the discussion. Working together, we can all contribute to the body confidence revolution!