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Description
As a strategic objective, the project “Vou Mudar o Mundo!” aims to involve and commit different agents in the community, particularly the young ones, in the construction of a participatory and civic culture, oriented to the achievement of rights and citizenship, and to the creation of space and time for the practice and promotion of volunteering. The project privileges actions in the school context, designed for the development of communities, through the execution of actions that cover three major dimensions of intervention: Awareness Raising, Training and Dissemination - which are carried out in awareness activities on Human Rights, Citizenship Education and Volunteering in the school community, with a view to train for the development/reinforcement of voluntary projects, whose scope is intended to be extended to the community in general.
Summary of project results
The project aimed to raise awareness within the school community about the practice of volunteering as an expression of active citizenship and solidarity. It aimed to empower children and young people between the ages of 10 and 25 in primary, secondary and university education.
During the implementation of the project, several activities were developed. Awareness and promotion of volunteering and citizenship education were conducted in eight schools in Barcelos, a municipality in the Braga district of northern Portugal. Each class participated in two sessions on Human Rights, two on Citizenship and Volunteering, and three sessions on creating volunteer projects and innovative ideas related to active citizenship and civic concerns. In total, 98 sessions were held, with an additional five sessions for volunteer project follow-up, involving 252 students and 19 teachers. Sixty-two volunteer projects were created.
Campaigns were also developed to enhance the impact of the awareness actions in schools. A debate was held on May 19 at the Municipal Auditorium of Barcelos, with 75 participants, where volunteer projects created by the youths were presented. On December 10, 2021, a grand walk and seminar took place in Barcelos, coinciding with International Volunteer Day and Human Rights Day, aiming to raise awareness. The walk included european volunteers, local entities, and schools. The event inspired and motivated around 300 participants, including students from secondary and university levels, to engage in community volunteer activities.
Six radio programs were broadcasted, starting on December 15, with the first program introducing the project to the general community. Subsequent programs featured participating schools.
Informative materials were developed and distributed, including the "School Volunteering Project" manual and a magazine featuring testimonies and reflections from students, teachers, and speakers involved in the project activities.
Key achievements included successfully engaging a large number of students and teachers, creating numerous volunteer projects, organizing impactful campaigns and events, and producing valuable educational materials.
In quantitative terms, the following was achieved:
- 1 awareness raising campaign carried out;
- 8 partnerships between NGOs and schools promoting civic education;
- 88% share of target group showing civic concerns.
Regarding capacity building, the promoter conducted a needs assessment and prepared an action plan. This resulted in a management software suite being implemented.
All proposed targets were met and exceeded.