Michele, AKA 'the best "Mr Banana" yet', with adoring fans
This is a guest blog.
We are Dario and Michele, two volunteers at the Coldplay concert in Turin.
Dario: I’ve already volunteered for Oxfam on a number of occasions and know the campaign COLTIVA (Italian for GROW) quite well. I’m also a fan of Coldplay and so I was super excited when Wendy from Oxfam Italia asked me if I wanted to take part at this event.
Michele: I’m a friend of Dario, I live in Turin and I hadn’t heard about the COLTIVA campaign until just a few days ago. When I first read about the campaign I immediately felt really involved; the issues are very interesting and so relevant today.
Dario, who introduced friend Michele to COLTIVA
Dario asked me if I’d like to participate in an event talking about the food system to Coldplay fans in Turin. I tried to learn as much as possible, for myself but also so I could tell everyone as much as possible about the campaign on the night!
Dario: On the journey from Rome to Turin, I studied the campaign and the documents Oxfam had prepared for us in detail. I also practiced a couple of phrases I could use to approach people that evening. I wanted to make sure I could answer all the questions and engage people. My excitement was building.
Michele: I’ve read so much in last few days about COLTIVA, as well as the history of carrots…! I’m a really talkative guy, so while I was apprehensive about getting the information right for people, I wasn’t worried about approaching them.
Dario
Dario: On the night, Michele and I were coupled together. I had the tablet to collect people’s email addresses and Michele was dressed as “Mr. Banana”.
I was very happy to spend time talking about COLTIVA and to spend time with my old friend Michele as well. He was great at getting people’s attention because of his outfit, and in involving them with Oxfam’s campaign. After a short while he was also REALLY confident with the key issues of COLTIVA and, I think, enjoyed the experience very much.
After 4 hours I was exhausted while Michele still seemed full of energy! I hope we did a good job and I have to say people were very interested in food justice issues; I believe these are topics that really involve every one of us. I was so tired after the show and has no voice left but I loved the experience. Oh! And Coldplay concert was great too!
Michele
Michele: I think I was the best “Mr Banana” Oxfam has had during the tour with Coldplay (ever, past and future)! [* Editor's note: Oxfam is completely unbiased towards fruit and veg and thinks that so far they've all been equally brilliant *] I had loads of fun and could have continued for hours.
Thanks to Dario, who reminded me, every now and again, of the key facts related to COLTIVA, so I soon felt more confident and became unstoppable!
The Coldplay fans were really nice and all of them were happy to hear about the campaign and to have a picture taken with Mr. Banana (the best ever). I really hope I can collaborate with Oxfam again and I’m sure I will!
If this blog has made you want to volunteer at a show, you can tweet us @oxfamontour or leave a comment below to get in touch with your local Oxfam rep.
“I’m the best ‘Mr Banana’ yet!” – Oxfam Italia volunteers tell us why they love Oxfam and GROW
Posted by Dario and Michele on 29 May 2012 in COLTIVA, GROW, Oxfam Italia, Turin, volunteer, volunteering
Michele, AKA 'the best "Mr Banana" yet', with adoring fans
This is a guest blog.
We are Dario and Michele, two volunteers at the Coldplay concert in Turin.
Dario: I’ve already volunteered for Oxfam on a number of occasions and know the campaign COLTIVA (Italian for GROW) quite well. I’m also a fan of Coldplay and so I was super excited when Wendy from Oxfam Italia asked me if I wanted to take part at this event.
Michele: I’m a friend of Dario, I live in Turin and I hadn’t heard about the COLTIVA campaign until just a few days ago. When I first read about the campaign I immediately felt really involved; the issues are very interesting and so relevant today.
Dario, who introduced friend Michele to COLTIVA
Dario asked me if I’d like to participate in an event talking about the food system to Coldplay fans in Turin. I tried to learn as much as possible, for myself but also so I could tell everyone as much as possible about the campaign on the night!
Dario: On the journey from Rome to Turin, I studied the campaign and the documents Oxfam had prepared for us in detail. I also practiced a couple of phrases I could use to approach people that evening. I wanted to make sure I could answer all the questions and engage people. My excitement was building.
Michele: I’ve read so much in last few days about COLTIVA, as well as the history of carrots…! I’m a really talkative guy, so while I was apprehensive about getting the information right for people, I wasn’t worried about approaching them.
Dario
Dario: On the night, Michele and I were coupled together. I had the tablet to collect people’s email addresses and Michele was dressed as “Mr. Banana”.
I was very happy to spend time talking about COLTIVA and to spend time with my old friend Michele as well. He was great at getting people’s attention because of his outfit, and in involving them with Oxfam’s campaign. After a short while he was also REALLY confident with the key issues of COLTIVA and, I think, enjoyed the experience very much.
After 4 hours I was exhausted while Michele still seemed full of energy! I hope we did a good job and I have to say people were very interested in food justice issues; I believe these are topics that really involve every one of us. I was so tired after the show and has no voice left but I loved the experience. Oh! And Coldplay concert was great too!
Michele: I think I was the best “Mr Banana” Oxfam has had during the tour with Coldplay (ever, past and future)! [* Editor's note: Oxfam is completely unbiased towards fruit and veg and thinks that so far they've all been equally brilliant
*] I had loads of fun and could have continued for hours.
Thanks to Dario, who reminded me, every now and again, of the key facts related to COLTIVA, so I soon felt more confident and became unstoppable!
The Coldplay fans were really nice and all of them were happy to hear about the campaign and to have a picture taken with Mr. Banana (the best ever). I really hope I can collaborate with Oxfam again and I’m sure I will!
Check out all the photos from the Turin gig on Oxfam Italia’s Facebook page.
If this blog has made you want to volunteer at a show, you can tweet us @oxfamontour or leave a comment below to get in touch with your local Oxfam rep.
Oxfam Italia