About | Dramblys

About us

The elefant in the dark

Tales from Masnavi (trans. by A.J. Arberry, Routledge, New York 2006),

the Sufi poet Rumi recounts the fable of "The Elephant in the Dark”.

“SOME Hindus had brought an elephant for exhibition and placed it in a dark house. Crowds of people were going into that dark place to see the beast. Finding that ocular inspection was impossible, each visitor felt it with his palm in the darkness.

The palm of one fell on the trunk. “This creature is like a water-spout”, he said.

The hand of another lighted on the elephant’s ear. To him the beast was evidently like a fan. Another rubber against its leg. “I found the elephant’s shape is like a pillar”, he said.

Another laid his hand on its back. “Certainly this elephant was like a throne”, she said. The sensual eye is just like the plan of the hand. The palm has not the means of covering the whole of the beast.

The eye of the Sea is one thing and the foam another. Let the foam go, and gaze with the eye of the Sea. Day and night foam-flecks are flung from the sea: Amazing! You behold the foam but not the Sea. We are like boats dishing together; our eyes are darkened, yet we are in clear water”.

"Dramblys” comes from the Lithuanian word for “elephant”. Our philosophy and vision has been inspired by the tale of the “Blind men and an elephant”, which illustrates a range of truths and fallacies depending on the perspective we adapt and our subjective experiences. The tale tells us about a group of blind men touching an elephant to find out what it is. Each of them touches different parts of the elephant and then compare their experiences, leading to complete disagreement.

"We have to remember that what we observe is not nature in itself, but nature exposed to our method of questioning", Werner Heisenberg.

Evaluating programmes

Evaluation matters. An effective and efficient evaluation plays a dual role: learning and accountability. Effective programme evaluation refers to a systematic way to improve and account for actions taken. Monitoring & evaluating are critical for tracking the implementation and outputs systematically, as well as measuring the effectiveness of the programmes. This provides the necessary data to guide strategic planning for designing and implementing programmes and projects. It is a valuable tool to strengthen the quality of existing programmes, as well as to contribute evidence-based knowledge in the field.

At DRAMBLYS, we aim to foster social innovation projects and ventures by providing impact and programme monitoring & evaluation, as well as by providing training workshops and consultations on evaluation.

Innovating leisure

In DRAMBLYS we approach leisure as a transforming force that contributes to creativity and social innovation.

Actually, as defined by the Oxford English dictionary, leisure is “the time when one is not working or occupied”. In our hyper-connected world, this notion seems impossible; one doesn’t know how to disconnect anymore, and thus, is occupied continuously. The concept of leisure has come a long way towards what it now is: a source of social and economic development at the global level. Not just a concept of free time, but the development of a civilization in which the role of people is the key to its transformation: social change. Interestingly enough, leisure is not the same social reality in all countries, or even in all regions of the very same country. That is why at DRAMBLYS we aim to bring individuals and communities closer with different realities through the innovation of leisure: by sharing life experiences involving leisure and making this space a unique platform to learn from each other, as well as supporting & empowering local communities in the development of responsible and sustainable leisure activities.

At DRAMBLYS we aim to promote awareness and develop understanding of sustainable and creative ways of leisure, including responsible tourism and thus, creating an impact on local communities.

Celebrating diversity

In DRAMBLYS we appreciate and celebrate diversity. The beauty of diversity lies in its profound richness: gender, race, class, religion, education, ability, language, nationality, sexual orientation, lifestyle – aspects in which we differ are in fact endless and makes us indeed unique. Acknowledging diversity embodies acceptance and continuous learning. If everyone in a band played lead guitar and no one the drums, you'd have really annoying music, don’t you think?

At DRAMBLYS we aim to bridge diverse communities by connecting and engaging different people from all walks of life. Through social learning and exchange of good practices, we aim to design colourful synergies and empowerment for responsible leadership.

Knowledge and Innovation through Diversity

When it comes to organizations, failure in diversity management can turn very costly indeed. In fact, current demographic changes stress the emerging need for new and creative approaches to managing people and approaching diversity. As acknowledged by the European Commission (2012), a diverse workplace represents a deeper pool of knowledge, skills, life experience, perspectives and expertise: “No matter how qualified your workforce is, without diversity, they are likely to think the same and to look for similar ways forward. Innovation requires a new perspective and a well managed diverse workforce can breed creativity and dynamic business solutions” (“Managing Diversity at Work: Realizing the Business Benefits with European Diversity Charters, Europe”, EC: 2012, p. 3).

DRAMBLYS invites you to join the following programmes:

1.“Go Social”: “Social English Language Course” and “Social Cinema Nights”.

2.“Salad Bowl”: Workshops and training programmes & activities on “Intercultural Communication” and “Diversity Management”.

3.“Living Library” project: Take out your prejudices!

Getting back to the roots

The Sum of Individual Efforts = Community Outcome. At DRAMBLYS, we believe that creativity starts from a belief. And we believe in the power of individuals, like you and me, and our capacity to change and shape our social reality and environment, taking small steps every day and starting from today.

At DRAMBLYS, we serve as a reminder of the good old practises! We behind for a “back to the roots” philosophy: rediscovering time-proven initiatives, learning from local communities around the globe and sharing recipes of sustainable alternatives. We integrate modern initiatives like ITCs, combined with social learning to promote and celebrate a simple, yet sustainable way of life! Think natural!

Visualizing information

Today, visual media and design is increasingly being generated, manipulated, and transmitted in a world of competing interests. Images and visual contents are compelling and engaging. In fact, images trigger more than words and can be successfully applied as a powerful learning methodology that facilitates better understanding, information retention, and thus, critical thinking.

Infographics and datavisualization capitalizes on human facilities for processing visual information and thereby improves comprehension, memory, inference, and decision-making. In DRAMBLYS, we aim to explore and apply the potential of social design and visual story-telling towards social innovations. We do believe in a successful marriage of visual tools with social creativity, which can provide us with results that are both creative and innovative.