Young males and females were trained in project management and popular education techniques. Eight teams of volunteers, five of which are led by young women, have been created. The sociology students, aged 18 to 26, were then able to implement their funded projects independently in July and August 2022. Project Implemented in ( Sulaymaniyah , Erbil and Duhok).
In Sulaymaniyah governorate, Tania’s project trained 28 future high school girls on topics such as human rights using popular education methods. The trained girls then created a film and a play about teenage social anxiety to raise awareness about the issue among youth, families and teachers. Another team of volunteers created a relaxation area in a schoolyard in Halabja. Made with tables and chairs thanks to the participation of the schoolchildren, it is a success since the pupils now wish to enlarge the space. In the same area of Kurdistan, another team of volunteers, coordinated by the young Tavga, organized a seven-day training in embroidery and sewing for 10 women with disabilities. This activity, which included a day of teamwork, motivated the women to develop their skills in this area and to support each other.
In the capital, in Erbil, the young project managers set up a capacity building workshop for the staff working in a retirement home on the use of popular education tools and especially on active participation methods. The volunteers then accompanied the teams of the retirement home to integrate the popular education approach into their practices and to respond to the psychosocial needs of the elderly.
In the northern governorate of Duhok, the Vaman volunteer team offered a workshop to eight children, including four autistic children. The workshop focused on inclusive drawing to show the importance of allowing children with disabilities to express themselves through artistic activities. The volunteers also produced a pamphlet and a video to raise awareness about the situation of children with autism and how to support them. The video was then screened in a park to raise awareness among the general public. Also in Duhok, volunteer Falah, along with other motivated young people, organized a workshop for 14 teachers to train them on the use of popular education tools, especially active methods, to make classrooms places where every child can participate in the learning process.
These projects, with their diverse themes, demonstrate the ability of young people to collectively implement activities that integrate the tools of popular education in order to raise awareness in their communities about important social issues such as inclusion and empowerment. The volunteers thus fit their projects into the more global program for the development of popular education in the territory. The young people trained have been supported to carry out projects that they themselves have conceived, created and implemented.
