Sport in the Service of Peace

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Israel
Start date 12/01/2024
End date 11/30/2025
Cost of the project €218,686
Foundation funding €65,385
Project identifier 2024000740
Partners Peres Center for Peace and Innovation
Categories Access to Sport - Conflict victims - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Even before the tragic events in Israel on 7 October 2023 and the subsequent war in Gaza, relations between Israelis and Palestinians and between Arab and Jewish citizens in Israel were marred by a longstanding conflict that has led to multi-generational fear, distrust and discrimination. Children and youth are particularly vulnerable to radicalising ‘us and them’ rhetoric, which has only got worse with the current war. It is therefore crucial to provide opportunities for positive dialogue that will enable Jewish and Arab children and young people to challenge their fears and break through the psychological, emotional and linguistic barriers that impede the building of foundations for mutual trust, respect and peace.

Project goals

  • Facilitate intercultural dialogue and peacebuilding among Jewish and Arab children, young people and adults in Israel and, if possible, in the Palestinian territories
  • Promote positive perceptions, challenge negative stereotypes and foster cooperation, trust and understanding among participants
  • Increase access to high-quality sport and peace education, especially on the geographic and socioeconomic peripheries

Project content

The Sport in the Service of Peace programme employs a ‘train the trainers’ model, working with community leaders and educators to provide anti-discrimination and leadership training for young people. Jewish and Arab educational partners work together to implement football-based peace education activities for children aged 8 to 12 in both mono- and bi-cultural contexts. Such activities include regular football training, Hebrew/Arabic language learning, cultural exchanges and peace education sessions, as well as football matches played in mixed Jewish-Arab teams using the FairPlay and Green Card methodologies.

Partners

Educafoot

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Benin, Parakou and Cotonou
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2027
Cost of the project €46,986
Foundation funding €30,000
Project identifier 2024000683
Partners Association Kenskoazell Afrika
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Since 2019, the Educafoot programme, in particular the educational element, has been refined following regular dialogue with the UEFA Foundation for Children to arrive at the programme currently being run in Senegal (ten schools), Côte d’Ivoire (50 schools) and Benin (now being expanded following a trial in five schools).

Project goals

  • Help children grow into the citizens of tomorrow by nurturing skills and values such as gender equality, environmental awareness, a work ethic, self-improvement, leadership, decision-making, social coexistence, following rules, respecting opponents and the importance of mental and physical well-being
  • Ensure access to sport by equipping 15 schools each year for three years and enabling thousands of children to take part in the Educafoot programme

Project content

The Educafoot programme's approach includes organising participants into mixed teams for the various events, having girls and boys referee, appointing co-captains, screening and discussing an educational film about the environment, making a net from plastic waste, encouraging the children to help clean the school before each match, and giving them French and mathematics tests.

Partners

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Sports centres for children, young people and their families

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Switzerland
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2025
Cost of the project €7,694,307
Foundation funding €80,000
Project identifier 2024000282
Partners Fondation IdéeSport
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Children and young people today often suffer from a sedentary lifestyle and lack of exercise, excessive use of social media, mental health problems, limited access to sports facilities and gender stereotypes. Participating in sport can help to address these issues and gives children a chance to meet new people, thereby supporting their healthy development and integration into the community.

Project goals

The IdéeSport Foundation uses sport to get young people moving, encourage them to lead a healthy lifestyle and prevent addiction. It aims to actively promote integration, particularly of disabled or migrant children and young people, by welcoming those from all social backgrounds, regardless of their gender, socio-economic status, ethnicity or sporting ability.

Project content

IdéeSport gives children and young people opportunities to meet, train and play in local public sports centres at weekends and during the holidays. The programmes are:

  • PeerPower, aimed at teenagers and young adults
  • MidnightSports, aimed at secondary school students
  • OpenSunday and ActiveWeek, aimed at primary school pupils
  • MiniMove, aimed at preschoolers and their parents

Partners

Football versus Discrimination

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Ireland
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2026
Cost of the project €268,773,88
Foundation funding €100,000
Project identifier 2024001292
Partners Sport Against Racism Ireland (SARI)
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Ireland has become an increasingly diverse community, with people of many ethnic backgrounds migrating and/or seeking asylum in Ireland. SARI proactively celebrates this but understands that it brings challenges. Over the past 12-16 months, Ireland has seen the rise of the far-right with an increase in anti-immigrant sentiment, protests and violent riots.
Sport can play a pivotal role in addressing these issues.

Project goals

The aim of the project is to break down barriers and further social inclusion by bringing people of different communities together through sport – and specifically football – to learn about, examine and challenge concepts such as discrimination and racism as well as learn about other cultures and Irish society. Specific goals are to:

  •  Increase mutual understanding between children & young people from diverse ethnic backgrounds
  • Help combat racism & all forms of discrimination
  • Promote the integration and inclusion of migrants & refugees into Irish schools & wider society
  • Facilitate participation of migrants in sport, volunteering and cultural activities
  • Promote gender equality in sport and society
  • Introduce children to the concept of Human Rights
  • Advocate for the inclusion of EDI education in the national curriculum

Project content

SARI coaches, both male and female from diverse ethnic backgrounds, visit schools across Ireland to deliver an Anti-discrimination workshop to students. This workshop addresses issues including racism, homophobia, sexism and disability.

Partners

The Fair Play Accelerator – bridging the social gap through Fair Play

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Czech Republic, Pilsen, Usti nad Labem, Liberec, Karlovy Vary and Olomouc
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2026
Cost of the project €219,198
Foundation funding €57,500
Project identifier 2024001076
Partners Fair Play Point
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Most of the estimated 250,000 Roma who live in Czechia are excluded from Czech society. Many live in segregated neighbourhoods a long way from sports facilities, or even safe places where they could play sport informally. In addition, they are often in precarious financial situations, meaning that the cost of transport, sportswear and club or lesson fees makes participating in sport impossible for them. They are also victims of educational inequality because schools are segregated, and as a result, most young people from Roma communities end up in a vicious circle of deprivation and face discrimination.

Project goals

  • Increase social cohesion among Roma young people and boost their sense of belonging and achievement
  • Address educational disparities in disadvantaged regions of Czechia
  • Cultivate fair play values and self-development through football
  • Connecting 50 youth clubs, social centers and other educational institutions in creating a holisitc after-school intervention.

Project content

  • Six regional fair play initiatives combining sport with social and educational activities for 300 children per month (September to July)
  • Two national days dedicated to fair play for all the participating children, youth workers and partners (July)
  • Two national fair play weekend camps for 60 children and youth workers (September)
  • Training programme for 30 youth leaders

Partners

Game with Mum & Dad

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Europe, Latin America and Caribbean
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2025
Cost of the project €599,000
Foundation funding €100,000
Project identifier 2024001152
Partners Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE)
Categories Gender Equality - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

More than 20 million children worldwide (2.1 million in Europe; 3.5 million in Latin America and Caribbean) are separated from an imprisoned parent, an experience that often causes children overwhelming sadness, grief and anxiety, in addition to the pains of stigmatisation and shame. There are few programmes structurally embedded within prisons that support children with imprisoned parents. Their rights and best interests deserve much greater attention from governments and society at large.

Project goals

GWMD uses football as an instrument for awareness-raising and societal progress with three main objectives:

  • To defend the rights and best interests of a particularly vulnerable population representing more than 1% of the world child population.
  • To support children's wellbeing by strengthening the child-parent bond imperilled by a parent’s detention.
  • To foster inclusion and empower children, despite the existence of prison walls and by working with prison authorities.

 

Project content

GWMD supports the all-important child-parent bond by bringing families together for a day of play, hugs and laughs. It builds on a model first developed in Italy and recently broadened in 2023 and 2024 to 10 other European nations as well as India. In 2025 we plan to expand to Argentina, Chile, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic, for a total of 21 countries. We apply the same methodology everywhere to ensure that child rights, child participation and child safeguarding remain paramount.

Partners

Life Champions 3.0: Every child has a right to be a life champion!

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Serbia, Belgrade and other cities in the region
Start date 12/01/2024
End date 11/30/2025
Cost of the project €268,500
Foundation funding €120,000
Project identifier 2024000105
Partners Development Center for Youth
Categories Access to Sport - Environmental protection - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Knowing that every child is a champion, we have directly communicated the Life Champions concept and values to more than 5,000 children and young adults throughout the Belgrade region, with priority given to sensitive target groups such as children from deprived areas and girls in sport. However, we are aware that many children are not addressed directly and therefore do not get the message, in particular children in the social welfare system (children without parental care). There are 32 institutions for such children in Serbia alone, housing 145,000 children, all of whom deserve the opportunity to become life champions.

Project goals

Overall goal: to better integrate children in the social welfare system in the Life Champions sporting and educational activities.

Specific targets

  • Adjust the training already developed to the needs and realities of this particular target group to equip 30 coaches from the Life Champions network to work with children in social welfare institutions
  • Pilot the adjusted training through four months of Life Champions activities with at least 300 children from six different institutions (48 sessions)
  • Organise sporting and educational camps for at least 720 children from social welfare institutions to support their social and personal development
  • Reach 3,000,000 people with a media campaign
  • Formulate recommendations on the further use of sport in work with children living in institutions, and empower institutions themselves to use sport and a collaborative approach to multiply the opportunities available to the children in their care

Project content

Life Champions 3.0 is envisaged as a 12-month partnership between the Development Center for Youth (project coordinator), the DEKI 5 football camp and AP Brera Strumica, a Macedonian football club based in Strumica. The initiative aims to break down barriers and foster an inclusive environment where all children can enjoy and learn from sport.

The basic Life Champions concept remains the same: using sport to support children’s upbringing and education. Tailored training will give Life Champions coaches the information, knowledge and skills they need to properly support and engage children in the social welfare system in sporting and educational activities.

The project will include different types of activity – open football days, training and mentoring, and sporting and educational camps – all with the aim of better including children living in institutional settings in the Life Champions concept, giving them additional knowledge and skills and supporting their social and personal development.

To achieve sustainable results will require partnerships with football clubs and other non-governmental organisations involved in education through sport, and resources to ensure that both the children themselves and the coaches working with them can thrive and achieve mutual growth and development.

Partners

Campo do Sancho

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Brazil, Recife, Pernambuco
Start date 04/01/2024
End date 08/31/2025
Cost of the project €114,575
Foundation funding €80,000
Project identifier 20230618
Partners love.fútbol
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

In Brazil, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE, 2020), 47% of the public schools have no sports infrastructure and 78% (2019) of the children and 84% of teenagers do less exercise than what is recommended by WHO.

Project goals

The project will take place in Sancho, a community that represents the reality of the lack of play spaces and quality education in northeastern Brazil.

  • Use love.fútbol's award-winning methodology and 16 years of experience developing community-driven sports spaces to create a football facility in an underserved community
  • Engage the local community and enable it to build and take ownership of this space as a platform dedicated to sports, and education
  • Deliver bi-weekly ‘sports for education’ sessions to 60 children
  • Partner with the city hall and the local organisation Cores do Amanhã to keep the space safe and provide a daily schedule

Project content

love.fútbol will promote a cross-sector partnership between Recife city hall, local grassroots non-profit organisation Cores do Amanhã, and a broader range of community leaders, groups, businesses, and organisations to plan, refurbish and reactivate a historic football pitch that will serve as a sustainable platform for sports and educational sessions, a point of integration between various sectors of the community, and a reference for municipal, state and regional public policy. The ‘Campo do Sancho’ will be more than a place to play, but a local hub for education, social coexistence and peace.

Partner

Fun Football in Nigeria

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Anambra, Kaduna, Benue and Kano (Nigeria)
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 03/31/2025
Cost of the project €200,000
Foundation funding €100,000
Project identifier 20230056
Partners Cross Cultures Project Association
Categories Access to Sport - Conflict victims - Employability - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Nigeria has a population of nearly 224 million, of which 63% are 24 years old or younger. Since gaining independence in 1960, Nigeria has faced almost constant conflict between the two major religions, between different ethnic groups and between pastoralists and farmers. This fighting has resulted in millions of deaths and unquantifiable social and material damage. In 2023, approximately 9.3 million people required emergency humanitarian assistance and nearly 3 million remained internally displaced. Women and children are particularly vulnerable: UNICEF estimates that six out of ten children in Nigeria experience some form of violence daily and nearly 20 million do not attend school, which puts them at an increased risk of violence, crime, child labour, poverty and recruitment by militias. In the northern regions, only 44% of girls receive primary education, and 48% marry before the age of 15. Moreover, unemployment among Nigerians aged 15–24 reached almost 53.4% in 2021. Nigeria is also highly susceptible to climate-change-related disasters such as floods and droughts, which exacerbate the humanitarian crises, conflict and poverty.

Project goals

Overall objective:

To promote peaceful coexistence, youth empowerment and child protection in Nigeria.

Specific goals:

  • To empower unemployed individuals with the skills and networks to promote peaceful coexistence, cooperation and social cohesion through Fun Football activities, while also enhancing their own resilience and opportunities to earn a living in grassroots sport or physical education.
  • To enhance child protection in conflict-sensitive areas with a focus on the most vulnerable, notably unschooled and internally displaced children.
  • To incorporate Fun Football into the curricula of primary schools in vulnerable communities as a means of promoting children's wellbeing and development and reducing the number of drop-outs.

Project content

Fun Football unites people across social divisions by helping them to find common ground around their passion for football and their hopes for their children's development and future. It also fosters children's social and psychological development by providing them with safe spaces to play, positive role models, new friendships, life skills and psychosocial support. Sport has been shown to play an effective role in keeping children in school since it promotes their social skills, mental well-being and self-confidence, all of which contribute to increased motivation and performance. Cross Cultures' Fun Football programme consists of three main activities:

  • Training for young leaders and coaches

Cross Cultures trains unemployed former footballers and women who are not in employment, education or training in action learning methods and the child-centred Fun Football philosophy so that they can take control of their lives and become more involved in their communities as volunteer leaders and coaches.

  • Open Fun Football Schools, Fun Festivals and other Fun Football activities

Children are given the opportunity to experience Fun Football with children from different backgrounds in a safe and peaceful environment characterised by friendship, non-violence, child protection and gender equality. The activities are led by the volunteer coaches and leaders.

  • Cross-sectoral cooperation:

The project works with 20 primary schools committed to introducing the concept of Fun Football. Cross Cultures aims to train 80 physical education teachers and coaches who will, in turn, train 5,000 participating students.

Partner

Football for all children

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bihać
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €146,343
Foundation funding €39,100
Project identifier 20230933
Partners Bihać youth football club (OFK Bihać)
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Local development strategies set out the need to provide access to sport for children and teenagers, train professional staff and improve sports facilities, especially for vulnerable and marginalised social groups.

Project goals

The project aims to provide inclusive access to sport for all children in local communities, including those in marginalised population groups, facilitate social interaction and remove stigma through football, promoting team spirit and equality among peers. By improving infrastructure, the project will enhance the capacities of OFK Bihać and long-term sustainability prospects for the benefit of the entire community.

Project content

The Prekounje sports centre that the project seeks to develop is located on the right bank of the Una river that runs through Bihać, in and adjacent to communities with about 17,000 citizens, incl. about 5,400 children of all ages, including the largest Roma community.

The sports centre will significantly improve access and opportunities for all children, in their neighbourhood, at walking distance from their homes. Additionally, the upgraded infrastructure will provide opportunities to increase the diversity and number of activities by over 60%, finally allowing evening/night activities and tournaments in a modern, safe environment for all children.

  • Inclusive football school: One year of free football practice, at least twice a week, with UEFA-licensed coaches, for boys and girls in marginalised population groups, together with peers from other communities, in mixed (ethnicity, gender, etc.) teams.
  • Enhancing facilities at the Prekounje sports centre: Modernising and upgrading the existing football pitch (100mx64m) and building a new artificial pitch (40mx20m).

Partner

This is How We Football

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location American Samoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tahiti, Tonga, Vanuatu
Start date 03/08/2023
End date 03/31/2025
Cost of the project €1,170,904
Foundation funding €175,000
Project identifier 20230422
Partners Oceania Football Confederation (OFC)
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

In 2022 the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) set about trying to understand and overcome the barriers to participation faced by women and girls, setting up a project that would address gender inequality and gender-based violence in the region.

The Pacific region faces some of the highest rates of violence against women and girls – twice the global average – with an estimated two out of every three women affected by gender-based violence. Discrimination extends onto the football pitch, with 70% of women insufficiently active and women and girls significantly underrepresented among players and in football leadership.

Football is unique in its ability to reach communities and bring individuals together across the Pacific. It is the most popular sport in the region and a high-impact, low-cost means of delivering social change and achieving our regional and international development goals.

Project goals

General

This is How We Football is designed to break down barriers to participation for women and girls and inspire a life-long engagement with the sport, supporting positive attitudes and action towards gender equality, delivering safe and supportive institutions and creating advocates for broader social change across all areas of the game.

Specific

  • 15,000 girls aged 13 to 18 participating in football and receiving messages of empowerment and resistance to gender-based violence every year across the Pacific
  • 30,000 boys and girls aged 6 to 12 participating in programmes that promote gender equality
  • 800+ coaches exhibiting enhanced understanding and positive attitudes towards girls’ in football
  • 800+ coaches, teachers and community volunteers trained in effective safeguarding for children
  • Online courses on gender equality, diversity and inclusion reaching 5,000 people annually
  • Safeguarding policy and focal point in all OFC member associations, and national action plans to achieve gender equality and address violence in and through football, including partnerships to enhance safe female participation

Project content

This is How We Football takes a holistic approach to achieving greater equality, by understanding needs and supporting change among players, coaches and organisations and in the community as a whole. The programme has been informed by extensive research and key activities outlined in the OFC Gender Equality Playbook.

It delivers programmes to children and adolescents that establish the knowledge, attitudes and practices needed to enhance gender empowerment, address gender-based violence and enable the participants themselves to become change makers in their communities. These activities are bolstered by training and capacity building, support for OFC member associations and other football organisations, and national and regional gender empowerment campaigns.

Partner

Diangsport (Education through sport in Wolof)

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Senegal, Mbour and Saly
Start date 12/06/2023
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €31,000
Foundation funding €21,000
Project identifier 20230494
Partners Association Kenskoazell Afrika (AKA)
Categories Access to Sport - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

At the inauguration of the Lycée Demba Diop (multi-sports field and multi-purpose hall in 2022), three head teachers came to ask us to help their schools as they were lacking sports facilities.

After visiting the schools in June last year, we decided to adapt the Educafoot programme used in primary schools to the needs of these high schools, offering sports and educational events along with an environmental and health-based approach, including menstrual education for the girls.

Project goals

Help the children to develop and become tomorrow’s adult citizens. To fulfil this goal, our programme covers several topics, such as gender equality, access to sport, environmental education, sporting values, a work ethic, self-improvement, social coexistence, adhering to rules, respect for opponents and health education. The aim is to enhance the children’s mental and physical well-being.

Project content

We use a toolbox comprising multiple approaches to achieve our objectives. For example, we have mixed teams in the various events, and both girls and boys are given the chance to referee in order to develop leadership and decision-making skills. We educate the children about environmental issues by showing them a film and discussing it, followed by an activity making a net out of plastic waste, and have them help clean the school before each game. We organise French and maths competitions. We set up joint captainship and address health issues, in particular menstruation for the girls.

Partner

Sport for Development

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Türkiye
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €250,000
Foundation funding €200,000
Project identifier 20230844
Partners Bonyan Organization for Youth and Development
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Conflict victims - Employability - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Syrian refugees and their host communities both face hurdles when it comes to playing sport in Türkiye. Limited resources, cultural differences and language barriers hinder access to activities, which has knock-on effects on people’s physical and mental well-being.

Project goals

Sport for Development seeks to create inclusive sports programmes that cater to refugee and host communities in Sanlıurfa and Adıyaman. By creating opportunities for refugee and local children to play sport together in a safe and supporting environment, we aim to foster mutual understanding and social integration, and promote inclusivity and gender equality. We will combine sport with specialised mental health and psychosocial support activities to empower these vulnerable children physically and mentally, equipping them with essential life skills, building resilience, and creating a sense of well-being and belonging in their communities. By doing so, we hope to be a catalyst for positive change, promoting the fundamental rights and holistic development of vulnerable children, irrespective of their background or nationality.

Project content

  • To increase girls' participation in sport
    • Girl-only programmes
    • Targeted campaigns
    • Gender-neutral sports activities
    • School partnerships
    • Involvement of parents and families
    • Accessible sports facilities
    • Collaboration with women's organisations
    • Scholarships and incentives
  • To incorporate environmental awareness in sport
    • Green sports equipment
    • Recycling bins and waste management
    • Upcycling initiatives
    • Awareness campaigns
    • Environmentally friendly sports events
    • Community clean-ups
  • To use football as a tool for mental health and psychosocial support
    • Football for stress reduction
    • Team-building activities
    • Mental health awareness sessions
    • Peer support networks
    • Therapeutic football sessions
    • Sport as a coping mechanism
    • Celebrating successes
    • Referrals for professional support
  • E-football league
    • Organisation of league matches
    • Monitoring and registration of results
    • Play-offs and finals
    • Prizes and awards
    • Feedback and evaluation

Partner

Peace Field Project

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Belgium, Mesen
Start date 01/04/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €100,000
Foundation funding €100,000
Project identifier 20230280
Partners Children's Football Alliance
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Conflict victims - Employability - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Young refugees, migrants, physically or developmentally disabled and poverty-stricken teenagers from war-torn communities have few opportunities to take ownership of peacebuilding projects. Low self-esteem, a lack of aspiration, mistrust and antisocial behaviour continue to fuel discord and disparity amongst cross-border communities. The situation remains hostile thanks to intergenerational relationships that often nurture resentment, making these young people easy targets for paramilitary recruitment.

Project goals

  • Help young people to develop their organisational, communication and intervention skills as well as teaching them about multiculturalism, conflict resolution and mindfulness
  • Establish annual events celebrating peace through football on ‘peace pitches’ twinned with the Flanders Peace Field.
  • Demonstrate the power of play
  • Advocate for equality, diversity and social inclusion.
  • Raise awareness of health and well-being, including mental health
  • Foster empathy and compassion among the participants
  • Nurture the peacemakers of tomorrow

Project content

The Peace Field Project (PFP) is a pedagogical programme designed to foster peace through play. The open online educational resources, toolkits and webinars prepare all participants for the week-long Global Peace Games, which feature mixed-gender and mixed-ability sports, excursions, art and music activities as well as workshops on conflict resolution, multiculturalism, deradicalisation and humanities. Peace education through play will harness the power of sport to create the peacemakers of the future.

Partners

Fostering Youth Leadership

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Kenya and Uganda
Start date 02/01/2024
End date 01/31/2025
Cost of the project €32,734
Foundation funding €15,900
Project identifier 20231140
Partners Power for the People
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Conflict victims - Employability - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

In a world where education is increasingly accessible, it's crucial to look beyond mere enrolment numbers and focus on the quality of experiences within schools.

While strides have been made in getting more girls into classrooms worldwide, there's still work to be done to ensure that education reaches beyond attendance to personal growth and empowerment.

Gender norms often limit girls’ opportunities for socialisation and personal development, leaving them with less leisure time and fewer chances to explore their potential. Boys, too, can be left behind by aid initiatives that primarily target girls' education.

PFP believes in creating inclusive spaces where all children can thrive. It has created the PFP Boys and Girls Clubs initiative, a convenient and effective way of supplementing traditional education. The clubs offer a holistic approach to education, encompassing everything from sports and physical health to digital literacy and environmental stewardship.

Project goals

  • Set up 15 PFP Clubs in three schools, leading to improved pupil attendance and attainment.
  • Engage school staff as teacher ambassadors who will offer mentorship and encouragement, increasing teacher and pupil engagement.
  • Recruit and train 30 student ambassadors (ten in each school) who will improve their leadership skills.
  • Enable 900+ pupils across the three schools to participate in an extra-curricular club offering them informal learning opportunities, peer support, personal development and improved physical and mental health.
  • Connect the participating schools to foster shared learning opportunities.

Project content

PFP Clubs will be set up in three schools to provide opportunities for boys and girls to develop personal leadership skills and learn essential life skills, like decision-making and communication. The clubs will provide safe and supportive spaces for young people to discuss issues they say are important to them: menstrual and sexual reproductive health, mental health, sports and physical health, environmental stewardship and digital literacy. They will learn to challenge gender norms and advocate for equality.

Each club will have two student ambassadors who will have access to a leadership and personal development programme. They will be tasked with developing and implementing a year-long programme to engage other pupils in activities. They will be given a small budget to manage, creating opportunities to take responsibility and be accountable to their school and their peers.

Regular online calls will connect pupils and teachers in the three participating schools so that they can learn together. The programme will culminate in an annual innovation prize to foster student-led solutions to the challenges they have identified.

Partner

Provision of psychosocial support to vulnerable children, adolescents and parents through sport (PORUCH)

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Poltaa and Sumska oblasts, Ukraine
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €1,019,850
Foundation funding €150,000
Project identifier 200230654
Partners United Around Football
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Conflict victims - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Since the start of full-scale war in February 2022, the children of Ukraine have experienced violence, trauma, loss, destruction and displacement, not to mention the stress of constant air raids and shelling. The living conditions, everyday news and general situation take a toll on their mental and physical health. According to official sources, by the morning of 29 November 2023, 511 children had been killed and more than 1,148 physically injured.

Recovery through sport is the ethos of PORUCH, a joint initiative by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine and UNICEF Ukraine to use sport, in particular football, to provide psychosocial support to children, teenagers and families affected by the war. They have teamed up with the Ukrainian Association of Football, foundation partner United Around Football, and Football Development in Ukraine, another charitable foundation.

Physical education teachers (sports coaches), psychologists and healthy lifestyle coaches (medical volunteers) engage participants in a form of play that will hopefully lead to regular physical activity and help them develop a range of skills and values in a positive, holistic way. This approach is considered effective in supporting psychological recovery after a traumatic experience and overcoming fears.

A similar project was implemented in 15 oblasts between March 2022 and May 2023, reaching 90,417  vulnerable children and 34,663 parents and guardians (indirect beneficiaries).

Project goals

General

  • Provide group psychological support to vulnerable children and teenagers through sport

Specific

  • Develop the methodology and materials for targeted psychological support through sport
  • Deliver group psychological sessions to 25,000 vulnerable children and teenagers in 2 oblasts (Poltava and Sumy) in central and northeastern Ukraine
  • Boost the capacity of professionals to provide targeted psychological support

 

Project content

Sports grounds will be divided into three zones or stations, where children will take turns playing mobile games with a football, working with a psychologist, and learning from medical volunteers about healthy lifestyles and what to do in case of injury.

  • Zone 1 – Sports coach
  • Zone 2 – Psychologist
  • Zone 3 – Medical volunteer

Approximately 30 children affected by war will participate in each session, in three groups of ten. Each group must visit each station twice.

Partner