Survivor-Centred Visual Narratives

07/22/2026

07/10/2026

📖 How can the memories of genocide be preserved for generations who did not witness it?

As part of the international Survivor-Centered Visual Narratives (SCVN) project, the War Childhood Museum collaborated with Srebrenica genocide survivor and Museum contributor Almasa Salihović and Swedish graphic novelist Anneli Furmark to create As Long As We Are Together—a graphic novel based on Almasa's childhood memories and experiences.

Developed through a collaborative, survivor-centered creative process, the book transforms personal testimony into a visual narrative while remaining faithful to Almasa's voice.

🔗 Read more about the project and the story behind the graphic novel at the link in comments.

07/01/2026

To support classroom engagement of Al-Faẓia’ الفظیع – The Horror: Surviving Syria’s Prisons, SCVN is pleased to announce teaching resources are now available in both German and English.

These units were developed by Dr. Tatia Grünbaum, and draw upon her research into the use of visual literature to advance Global Citizenship Education in schools.

The resources, titled ‘Life in Moments’, were developed for upper-secondary school students and designed to support teachers seeking materials to challenge their classes to think critically about violent authoritarian rule, survival, and resistance through the lens of Akram Al Saud’s experiences in Syria. The materials include four lessons with key terms and a reference list, and provide visual literacy and cross-curricular teaching suggestions.

Download a free PDF copy of each from our Educational Resources page: https://visualnarratives.org/resources/educationalresources/

View the German and English versions as online flipbooks:
German: https://heyzine.com/flip-book/ff22b78049.html
English: https://heyzine.com/flip-book/013df77ca6.html

06/29/2026

Stories like "Al-Fazia': the Horror. Surviving Syria's Prisons" by Tobi Dahmen and Akram Al Saud remind us why collaborative, survivor-centred storytelling matters.

We remain committed to fostering respectful dialogue that honours lived experiences and rejects dehumanization. We are grateful to everyone engaging with this work with empathy and care.

Thank you to ARTE Info for featuring the collaboration between Tobi Dahmen and Akram Al Saud. Survivor-Centred Visual Narratives is proud to support projects that bring communities, artists, and survivors together through ethical, care-based collaboration.

06/23/2026

Comic artist Tobi Dahmen has captured the story of Akram Al Saud, who was studying architecture in Aleppo when the Assad regime arrested and tortured him.

Tobi and Akram both joined at “What is Testimony For?” in May to talk about their upcoming collaboration around al Saud’s experiences, "Al-Faẓia’” (University of Toronto Press). The collaboration was produced by Survivor-Centred Visual Narratives, and ARTE has now produced a video profile on their work together ahead of the release of the graphic novel later this year.

Watch: https://www.arte.tv/de/videos/133867-000-A/folter-ueberleben-syriens-grauen-als-graphic-novel/

06/16/2026

Congratulations to Ghada Youssef on becoming a Winner of the 2026 SSHRC Storytellers Challenge! University of Victoria

Watch her entry here: https://tinyurl.com/3kxp4x3j

We are grateful for your amazing work and proud of your representation of the SCVN project - thank you Ghada!

⭐Congrats to the 2026 Winners of the Challenge!

Andrea Bentz, uOttawa
Kate Motluk, University of Toronto
Diana Peña Ruiz, Institut national de la recherche scientifique - INRS
Jaclyn Roach, University of Regina
Ghada Youssef, University of Victoria

And a big thank you to our judges this year: Sumeep Bath, Estelle Chamoux, and Gabrielle Durand.

Read more: https://www.canada.ca/en/social-sciences-humanities-research/news/2026/06/top-research-communicators-named-at-2026-sshrc-storytellers-challenge.html

Science Writers and Communicators of Canada