DIVERSITY FOR PEACE

https://asfar.org.uk/home/resolve-reconciliation-thru-youth/
Paola Candita

RESOLVE: Peace Camps Online Dialogue

by Paola Candita

This paper sets the main points of the project RESOLVE: Peace Camps Online Dialogue that has been carried out online for 2 weeks in 2021 (22nd of February-3rd of March). It was a project that I firsthand joined as an active member of Associazione SUD Italy.

RESOLVE is a project supported by ERASMUS+, the European Union Program for education, training, youth and sport with the aim of enhance education, training and youth across Europe. Besides, the Resolve: Peace Camps Online Dialogue Activity is a skills development and dialogue focused activities where young community change makers and local peace builders address the societies’ social intolerance throughout Europe.

The designation “Resolve” has not been employed by chance, indeed Resolve stands for the awareness and action against the poverty which brings vulnerable societies, deprived of development and education, in a nutshell. These societies bear the brunt of their weakness and, as a consequence, they pay the price of the discrimination and the isolation.

The host organization for this project is ASFAR, a social enterprise and International NGO which works with young people, women & their communities in Europe, MENA, the Caucasus and the Balkans in Peace building, Sport for Peace, Volunteering, Educational, Enterprise & Skills & Cultural learning.

Different and multiple are the purposes of this Training Course. First of all the fostering of youth leaders’ views on key socio-economic political issues in our world today; second of all the learning about social action, civic responsibility and citizenship; broadening of skills like: Leadership, Team Building, Communication, social awareness and EU key competencies.

During this TC I was keen on having such interesting debates with all the attendees coming from every corner of the world. We took part in different activities using various online platforms (Mural, Canva, Padlet and so on). Thereby discovering new tools to be used in my future projects as well. Different activities that have been carried out draw my attention.

I learnt further the value of the non formal education, overall throughout the workshop about the Digital Storytelling since it is a skill that I can acquired thereby creating new projects on my own and for the association where I am part of. Several activities changed my perspective concerning the political matters, indeed this activity dealt with a Role Game which calls for politicians, mediators and diplomats in order to find a settling. These characters have to find resolutions and enter into negotiations, I was so enthusiast for taking part in this activity. It was an excellent exercise also for a project such as the Model United Nations.

I decided to share a word defining this experience with ASFAR, the word is: DIVERSITY.

A term that I repeated several times during this report. In my opinion the diversity is a value that we cannot underestimate especially during projects like this. The fact that we are different motivates us since we understand that till that moment we did not know the other realities. This means that now I am more motivated to delve into topics and issues that I was ignoring beforehand.

Therefore, my passion for conflict resolutions and peace building will be enhanced thanks to training courses like this last one.

Earth Day 2021

Restore our Earth!

On April 22nd we celebrate the environment and the protection of planet Earth.

Attention to these issues has grown steadily in recent years, one thinks of the Paris 2015 conference (COP21) for the reduction of CO2 emissions and of the youth movement Fridays for Future which led the European Union to adopt the Green new deal. Lastly, the European Commission has asked European governments that at least 36% of the Next Generation Eu post-pandemic recovery plan be used for the ecological transition.

According to a research conducted by the University of Colorado – carried out through simulation games on groups that deal with resource management in various communities in Peru, Tanzania and Indonesia – and published in 2019 in the scientific journal Nature, environmental protection increases when groups assigned to the project are made up of at least 50% of female representatives.

WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT IS KEY TO REDUCING CLIMATE CHANGE

Empowering women and girls in developing countries ranked second among 76 solutions for curbing global warming to 2 degrees Celsius, according to a new report by the climate research organization Project Drawdown. Drawdown estimates that girls’ education and family planning would reduce carbon by 85 gigatons by 2050.

Gender equality in health and education hasn’t received much public attention as a climate solution, even though it’s been on the global sustainability radar for years.

In 2015, the United Nations included “achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls” in its 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

How does gender equality reduce emissions?

With access to education, family planning and birth control, women have the ability to choose how many children to have and when they have them. The report shows that with this access, women have less children and have them later in life. In both rural and urban areas, slower population growth relieves stress on ecosystems, allowing resources to recover from overuse without compromising local food access.

With these additional resources, women also earn more money, achieve career goals and face fewer health issues. Rural women see higher crop yields, providing better nutrition and financial stability for their families. 

Unique contributions of women

But slowed population growth isn’t the only sustainable benefit to empowering women. Women also hold valuable knowledge for adapting to climate change.

It’s not only a human right, it’s to be intelligent. Because if 50 percent of the population is underperforming, the economy is not going to flourish. Women’s economic empowerment is empowering society.

Source: https://bit.ly/3elSVWV

Click here to view the #LAB4GE “Earth Day 2021” brochure

International Women’s Day 2021

Woman, Inequalities in Work and COVID-19

On the occasion of International Women’s Day 2021, we want to celebrate the tremendous efforts that have been dedicated to achieving an equal future in the world of work.

Still, a lot needs to be done.

Covid-19 Pandemic has negatively affected women’s working life in different ways worldwide. During the Pandemic, most healthcare workers were females, and their exposure to the Corona Virus was higher than males. The burden of home care for women has increased during the Pandemic. Similarly, gender inequalities during the Pandemic have increased because of the absence of women in decision-making positions. Their voices and ideas are not majorly included in the policies. 

#LAB4GE #8thMarch #womensday #Erasmusplus #KA2

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There are plenty of ways for shaping the equal future of women in work

We believe that educating and outreaching local communities through awareness-raising and capacity building contributes to women’s empowerment in many fields of work. The project ‘Learn Abroad to do Better at home for Gender Equality (LAB 4 GE)’, with the participation of 6 other organizations from all over Europe, aims to empower women entrepreneurship. In this project, we raise awareness in our communities on gender-based inequalities related to entrepreneurship and provide education for those who want to work for empowering women as entrepreneurs. 

And what else? What can NGOs do? What do you do locally to support women, policy and the culture of work? 

  • Advocate for equal pay, equal representation of women in decision-making positions
  • Support and elect women in leadership positions 
  • Fights against sexual harassment and violence at workplaces
  • Encourage parents and couples to share domestic and care-work at home equally
  • Raising awareness among educators, youth on gender bias, stereotypes 
  • Amplify the voice of women leaders and experts on global issues 
  • Find ways to support girls, young woman and woman in STEM fields
  • Give voice to research on women related issues
  • Share stories of women, use your platform, media
  • Support women’s rights organizations
  • Educate on gender equality 
  • Empower the next generation of women 
  • …

How could you continue this list? 

Please, give us some ideas, hints, examples in the comment section to collect and share and support each other.

Lab4GE – KA2 Erasmus+ Project

L’Europa è considerata una delle regioni più avanzate a livello mondiale per quanto riguarda l’uguaglianza di genere. Negli ultimi 100 anni, le donne hanno guadagnato il diritto di lavorare e di votare.

Tuttavia, molte lacune devono essere colmate quando si tratta di violenza di genere, parità di retribuzione e presenza di donne in posizioni di responsabilità.

Su questi aspetti, le statistiche ci dicono che una donna su tre nell’UE ha subito violenza fisica e/o sessuale. Inoltre, anche se le donne sono la maggioranza delle persone con laurea, guadagnano in media il 16% in meno degli uomini e solo l’8% degli amministratori delegati delle più grandi aziende in Europa sono donne.

Questi dati mostrano che è necessario uno slancio per questo processo, altrimenti ci vorrà più di un secolo per raggiungere l’uguaglianza di genere.

Per affrontare questo problema, la Commissione Europea, attraverso la Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025, ha definito le azioni chiave per i prossimi 5 anni in maniera da assicurare una prospettiva di parità in tutte le aree politiche dell’Unione.

Il progetto di partenariato strategico Erasmus+ “Learn Abroad to Do Better at Home for Gender Equality” (LAB4GE) mira a rappresentare un contributo della società civile a questo scopo.

Partner di sei paesi europei (Ungheria, Danimarca, Italia, Regno Unito, Romania e Spagna) lavoreranno insieme, attraverso la condivisione di metodologie e buone pratiche, attraverso il rafforzamento di alleanze a livello regionale, nazionale ed europeo con entità che lottano contro le disuguaglianze di genere, per rafforzare la consapevolezza dell’importanza di garantire pari opportunità al fine di costruire una società più giusta e prospera per tutti. 

Durante i 32 mesi in cui il progetto è articolato, le 4 visite partecipative e il corso di formazione internazionale offriranno occasione per approfondire la tematica, sviluppare conoscenze, abilità e competenze più ampie sulla tematica, per favorire lo sviluppo sociale e migliorare le performance imprenditoriali femminili in Europa. 

Follow the project in this blog at the dedicated section: LAB4GE

TAG: ErasmusLab4GE

Follow the project on SUD website: LAB4GE

Follow the project on social media: #Lab4GE

Enjoy!

Erasmus+ Project

“Learn Abroad to Do Better at Home for Gender Equality”

English version

Europe is considered to be one of the most advanced regions in the world with regard to gender equality. Over the past 100 years, women have earned the right to work and vote.

However, many gaps need to be filled when it comes to gender-based violence, the gender pay gap and the presence of women in positions of responsibility. On these aspects, statistics tell us that one in three women in the EU has been subjected to physical and/or sexual violence. Even though women are the majority among graduates, they earn on average 16% less than men and only 8% of the CEOs of the largest companies in the EU are women. 

These data show that momentum is needed for this process, otherwise it will take more than a century to achieve gender equality. To address this problem, the European Commission, through the Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025, has defined the key actions for the next 5 years that ensure a perspective of equality in all EU policy areas. 

The Erasmus + strategic partnership project “Learn Abroad to Do Better at Home for Gender Equality” (LAB4GE) aims to represent a contribution from civil society to this goal. 

Partners from six European countries (Hungary, Denmark, Italy, United Kingdom, Romania and Spain) will work together, through the sharing of methodologies and best practices, through the strengthen of alliances at the regional, national and European levels with entities that fight against gender inequality, for reinforcing the awareness of the importance to guarantee equal opportunities in order to build a fairer and more prosperous society for all.

During the 32-month duration of the project, the 4 participatory visits and the international training course will offer opportunities to deepen the topic, develop wider knowledge, skills and competences to foster social development and improve female entrepreneurial performances in Europe.

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