Entering Utopia - The envelopes

 

In April 2023, the Utopia Youth Exchange took place, bringing 39 youngsters at a big house in Ommen, in the middle of the Netherlands . Every participant had to travel there on their own or with their national team. Once they reached the border of Utopia they had to give their phones, electrical devices and wallet with their cash and credit cards to the organizers in order to enter Utopia with the same opportunities. They also received an envelope with a letter that told them in which micro nation they are going to live in the upcoming days.

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The micronations were the following: the most underprivileged class, the lower class, higher class and the privileged class. Every class had a color and they could only use the spaces in the building marked with their color. The three more privileged classes had their accommodation in the main house, but the most underprivileged had to sleep outside in wooden bungalows without a proper shower. Being part of micronations for the duration of the project, represent the way that each individual can't choose their destiny and the place they have in society in their first steps in life. All they can do, is take ownership of situation they find themselves in and work their way up.

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We asked the participants how they felt when they got the envelopes to hand holding their destiny.

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Golden team - the privileged ones:

One of the team members wasn’t surprised that she got into the higher class, but still she was really happy to be there, since the weather wasn’t that good in those days to sleep outside. Another member didn’t expect it and she felt very lucky to have the privilege they did compared to the other teams. It seems like no-one minds to have luxurious conditions.

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Red team - the upper class:

However the red wasn’t the most privileged class, even two members told us they expected something more challenging and they felt disappointed in the beginning. After a while they realized even a privileged team has to face many problems and difficulties, so eventually they had the chance to challenge themselves. Some people are more willing to work on themselves, others just enjoy the nice conditions.

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Orange team -  the lower class:

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The girls we asked had mixed feelings at the beginning, but one of them said she loved the team from the bottom of her heart after two hours, the other person felt really grateful for living in the house and having proper showers after she found out there was an even more disadvantaged class, who had to sleep outside. 

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Green team - the most underprivileged class:

We didn’t receive any interviews with the team members. Did they survive the first night out there in the dutch wild?

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