WE WORK TO BUILD A WELCOMING INTERCULTURAL SOCIETY
We do it by speaking about migration, rights and integration, trying to reflect with young people about ethnic, linguistic and religious diversity, considering them assets and not an obstacle for our future.
We collaborate with all institutes, customizing the training according to the age and needs of the students.
WINDOWS – REFUGEES’ STORIES
The project was inspired by an idea of Centro Astalli Foundation in 2002, to favor reflection, especially among young people and students, on the topic of asylum, in particular through direct contact with refugees and listening to their stories.
The Popoli Insieme Association has been proposing this project for many years to schools in and around Padua and Rovigo, reaching an increasingly larger number of students.
Since 2015, the Windows project has been part of the projects for schools supported by the Cassa di Risparmio di Padova e Rovigo Foundation in the “Actively” Project area. During the 2016/2017 school year, 40 European high schools were involved, for a total of 80 classes and 1,696 students.
When we go into classrooms, we try to speak about migration in numbers and statistics with material specifically prepared by the Centro Astalli Foundation in Roma. We start with what the students know and think to then face a very complex topic together. However, it is definitely the refugee’s story, their testimony that is the heart of the project. Listening to the refugees’ voices frees us of prejudice and clichés.
We hope that the students who participate in this project come out more informed about welcoming and international protection, as well as with the understanding that each story deserves to be heard and that only through meeting others can we understand the dynamics that drive people to leave their countries.
We believe this project is a precious opportunity to come together and communicate, which not only enriches the students and teachers, but also the volunteers, and the refugees themselves, who become the protagonists of an educational and cultural experience.
WINDOWS FOCUS
For the classes that have already worked with the Windows project, the Association proposes some courses, designed and experimented by the Centro Astalli Foundation in Rome. The paths are different and permit facing the topic of exile through four focuses that involve the students in the topics they are most interested in, which are particularly related to the school they attend. The four focuses concern:
- Journalism and Immigration
- Literature and Exile
- Music and Exile
- Forgotten Wars
The following link gives a detailed description of the four focuses: http://centroastalli.it/category/attivita-nelle-scuole/finestre-focus/
Teachers interested in proposing a focus to their class can contact the Association to find out how to implement the project and start the class work.
LET’S MEET! #POPOLINSIEME
With regard to educational projects, we are available to design and organize ad hoc training projects for elementary and middle schools. The possible topics include:
- Human rights and children’s rights;
- Identity and diversity;
- migration;
- the right to international protection.
The course can be organized in one or two meetings, based on the objectives and activities chosen. We prefer to work with only one class at a time so that all the children can be involved. We organize courses based on the group’s characteristics. Our idea is to raise awareness of the topic (whether it is migration human rights or the right to asylum) through games and group activities that constantly stimulate exchange, active reciprocity and finally, critical thought.
For information about our educational projects, please contact:
progettididattici@popolinsieme.eu
