Description
The project aims to promote gender equality and non-violence by raising awareness among children and youth in the region of Braga (northern Portugal), highlighting the importance of cultural diversity and tolerance. To achieve the goal of better preventing gender violence and discriminatory behaviours, the promoter will employ participatory methods that stimulate creativity and artistic expression, such as deconstruction and reconstruction of stories, based on fundamental rights. It is expected that young people take on an active role in the construction of an active citizenship, without social exclusion, and that they disseminate the principles and good practices acquired to the rest of society, fostering equality and understanding between cultures as well as social justice. The project also aims to involve teachers, enabling them to pass on equality and civic participation values in an integrated way.
Summary of project results
Gender-based violence and other discriminatory behaviours are still pervasive in Portugal. Civil society has been addressing these issues for decades, slowly working towards a change in mentalities. In recent years, this work has been supported by the EEA Grants through its support to a significant number of NGO-promoted projects. Regarding this project, the promoter’s goal was to raise awareness among children and youth, as well as teachers, on gender equality and non-violence. Implemented in various schools in the region of Braga (northern Portugal), it also highlighting the importance of cultural diversity and tolerance. The promoter employed participatory methods that stimulate creativity and artistic expression, such as wall painting, theatrical performance, photography, deconstruction and reconstruction of stories. Young people are expected, after this project, to take on an active role in the construction of an active citizenship and to pass on what they have learn through their everyday lives. Carried out in the school environment, the project also involved and empowered teachers, enabling them to better understand these issues and address them with their students. The three NGOs which worked together on this project gained valuable experience as well, helping improve future activities in defence of the fundamental rights. Other inequality issues (targeting ethnical minorities, people with disabilities and LGBT people) were also addressed in various awareness-raising activities in which 111 teachers and 1120 students participated. Mentalities are often changed in small, incremental steps, and the project promoter, which primarily addresses youth issues, reported that this had been a very effective project in creating a proactive mindset regarding the issues addressed; but also in demonstrating that these issues are not yet sufficiently present in the classrooms. The activities carried out, while being considered innovative, were very well accepted by most people involved, and contributed towards greater recognition of the work carried out by the three NGOs directly involved.
Summary of bilateral results