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Description
The Project aims to strengthen the role of the community in the prevention of gender-based violence (GBV) among adolescents and young adults (15-26 years old) that takes place at school and at the University, by combating the passive and silent complacency on the part of witnesses of GBV incidents. To achieve this goal, educational material will be developed and educational activities will be provided to the Project’s special target groups (education professionals, youth workers, social workers, parents and peer-groups), tailored to the learning needs of each group after relevant needs assessment. These activities will equip a number beneficiaries with the knowledge and skills they need to act i. as "Active Preventers", who are able to intervene at an early stage and offer youth at risk of becoming GBV offenders with the psychological & social support they need or direct them to the appropriate structures, and ii. as "Active Bystanders", who are able to discourage, prevent or intervene in cases of gender-based violence in a safe and effective manner. In addition, during the Project an awareness raising campaign will be carried out, consisting of a series of actions, i.e.the collection of experiences/testimonies of young people, the announcement of a panhellenic photo-contest open to youth and the participatory design, organization and implementation of local actions in Athens and Kavala by youth groups of the local community, under the guidance of the Partners. Upon the project’s completion, it is expected that many Greek citizens will have become aware and familiar with the community-driven GBV prevention approaches, which are promoted by the Project. The Consortium consists of the Athens-based NGO “Entrepreneurship and Social Economy Group – EKO”, which is the Project Promoter, and 3 Partners: the Department of Social Work of University of West Attica (Athens), the Association "PNOI" (Kavala) and the non-profit organization "Terram Pacis"(Oslo, Norway).
Summary of project results
The project "Active Preventers and Active Bystanders: Preventing Gender Based Violence in Youth'' life" aims to prevent gender based violence in the lives of young people, not only to tackle it, but also to empower the wider society in order to gradually eliminate incidents of silencing and/or non-intervention in relevant incidents, on the side of people who accidentally witness them, as well as in the best possible response to perpetrators of gender-based violence, in order to understand the path that led them to commit (gender-based) violence and to provide them with appropriate psychosocial support.
During the project, the following activities were implemented: - Exploration of the learning needs of youth along with the people who, due to their status, are in the close environment of young people and can observe and affect the behaviour of young people (parents, teachers, social workers, youth workers), through the gathering of their responses to specially designed questionnaires developed and promoted for this purpose. - Development of Training Guides for the cultivation of an "Active Bystander" and "Active Preventer" mentality that provide the know-how for the effective intervention in incidents of gender-based violence, (greater) understanding and support of victims and recognition of possible indications of future or current use of violence. - Organisation of workshops, targeting both young people as well as people who, by their status, are in the direct surroundings of young people, with the aim of empowering them to manage gender-based violence incidents more effectively and to support (potential) victims and perpetrators of such incidents. - Organising awareness-raising activities and events aimed at the general public with a view to preventing and tackling the phenomenon. - Implementation of a nationwide photography competition, which gave young people the opportunity, through artistic expression, to express their perspective on the problem of gender-based violence and to actively participate in raising awareness in the community.
The project contributed to the expected outcome of the project: "Promoting gender equality and combating gender-based violence through
"Promoting gender equality and combating gender inequality through the implementation of a variety of educational activities, as analysed above, aimed at empowering both young people and stakeholders". stakeholders who, by virtue of their status, are in direct contact with young people.
More specifically, the implementation of the project, through the production of the educational material, the implementation of the actions and the involvement of target groups who, by virtue of their status and/or position, can act as multipliers of the ''Active Observer'' mentality, and ''Active Deterrent'', has had a positive effect on the following:
● Cultivating and strengthening public awareness about gender-based violence in adolescence & young adulthood in
● Combating the stigma associated with reporting incidents of gender-based violence by witnesses of incidents
● The education & empowerment of people in the immediate social environment of [potential] perpetrators (parents), through the development of the necessary skills to act as "active deterrents", intervening in a timely manner for the psychological & social support of young people who show warning signs of violent behaviour
● The activation of the sense of social responsibility & empowerment of specific groups of the population that constitute the direct social
the social environment of victims & perpetrators (peer groups) to act as "active observers" who can effectively & safely discourage, prevent or intervene in incidents of gender-based violence.
Summary of bilateral results
The CSO from Norway Terram Pacis, for the most part, played a crusial advisory role in the project, through its ongoing and multidimensional expertise on operational modalities education on the issue of gender equality. Thus, their contribution to the project implementation and success was of vital significance.