To deepen and maintain Education initiatives within a humanitarian context, to better support the development of children, adolescents and young people, in spite of the challenging contexts in which they live. This was the main objective of the projects developed by the Fraternity – International Humanitarian Missions (FIHM), through the Sector on Education in Emergency Situations and Humanitarian Responses, which sought to deepen and maintain the initiatives on Education within a humanitarian context during 2023.
Among the activities two humanitarian missions stand out, the one in Turkey and the one in Angola, the Plan of Action developed together with the municipal schools of Carmo da Cachoeira, the Course on Education in Emergency Situations and Humanitarian Responses: Portugal-Angola-Brazil, the Toolkit – Training on Nurturing the Spiritual Development of Children in the early years – Arigatou International and other trainings.
INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITIES AND THOSE IN BRAZIL
In the Turkey Mission there were interventions on education in emergency situations in partnership with local action organizations, intended for children, adolescents and young people affected by the earthquakes. The objective of the interventions was to alleviate the initial impact of traumatic situations, releasing tension through activities that help to strengthen the inner structures of affected people, and reframing their lives. The activities were carried out in schools and shelters in the first semester, encompassing 1,142 people.
The Angola Mission, done together with the Santa Isabel Charity for Children’s Work (OCSI), involved children, adolescents and young people, and the care team, educators and teachers, provided positive relationships and empowering experiences in safe learning and development environments.
The activities addressed education focused on overcoming trauma, inclusive and social education, including workshops and trainings that were also offered to the teachers of the Esperança and Camossi Schools, which take care of children and adolescents from the Children’s House. A total of 637 people were served.
With the purpose of expanding the skills of society and its educational actors, the Fraternity – Humanitarian Missions (FIHM), in partnership with the Paula Frassinetti School of Higher Education (ESEPF), of Portugal, and in collaboration with the Santa Dorotéia do Lobito Teaching School, of Angola, and the Frassinetti do Recife University Centre (Unifafire), of Brazil, taught the course for Education in Emergency Situations and Humanitarian Responses, expanding the relationships of three countries of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP).
Done in both online and in person modalities, the course had the participants get to know and reflect on the various humanitarian scenarios of emergency and vulnerability in the world. They worked on the humanitarian principles and protocols, the content of the Sphere Humanitarian Standards, the Childhood Protection Protocols (CPMS), and the Minimum Requirements for Education of the Interagency Network on Education in Emergencies (RME-INEE).
The course had 64 participants, 6 being from Portugal, 20 from Brazil, and 38 from Angola, representatives of 21 Institutions. There were 16 intervention plans put together.
Members of the Fraternity – Humanitarian Missions (FIHM) participated in the workshop Nurturing the spiritual development of children in the early years and the prevention of violence, organized by the Children’s Ministry and Arigatou International. The training was held from May 8 to12, in Curitiba, with the goal of forming a first team of trainers for the implementation of the Toolkit (innovative resource for protecting children from violence and fostering their well-being) in four countries: Brazil, Mexico, Pakistan, and India.
In December, the Fraternity – Humanitarian Missions (FIHM) carried out the training for facilitators of the Angola Humanitarian Mission and members of the Flor de Lys Light-Community, also affiliated with the Fraternity – International Humanitarian Federation (FIHF), in Fatima, Portugal.
The two completed trainings opened up a field of possibilities for the accomplishment of this training in 2024, adapted to the context of Angola, with different audiences and organizations. The trainings continued into the second semester. The subjects presented were: therapeutic drawings, mandalas and literacy.
The mandala workshop, as part of therapeutic drawings, was done at the Figueira Light-Nucleus in São Carlos, SP, and at the Flor de Lys Light-Community in Portugal. Its objective was to train servers to use this artistic and therapeutic tool in the art-education practices, a resource that can help in processing traumatic experiences, and the inner restoration of individuals who for some reason had their inner structures affected.
There were four training meetings on literacy, on different pedagogical lines, with a focus on the Montessori, Waldorf and Paula Freire teaching systems, in order to better prepare the members of the sector for initiatives to support school reinforcement and literacy. A total of 64 people participated in the trainings.
ACTIVITIES IN CARMO DA CACHOEIRA
Besides international activities, the Fraternity – Humanitarian Missions (FIHM) acted locally as the Focal Point – Brazil of the Inter-institutional Network of Education in Emergencies (INEE), developing a Support Plan for the Municipal Secretary of Education of Carmo da Cachoeira, in southern Minas Gerais, where the Fraternity – Humanitarian Missions (FIHM) is headquartered.
The activities, focused on the Minimum Requirements for Education (RME-INEE), were directed at teachers and parents of five municipal schools, involving 298 people, who participated in an exchange of experiences, conversation rounds and workshops.
Continuing with activities aimed at municipal schools in Carmo da Cachoeira, with the goal of perfecting introduced response strategies, the Workshop Laboratory Teaching the educator about protection, prevention, a safe school and a culture of peace was developed.
Art-education strategies and dialogical approaches were applied, through empathetic listening and the exploration of values for protection, prevention, a safe space and a culture of peace. The proposal had the support of affiliates and the network of collaborators of the Fraternity – Humanitarian Missions (FIHM), totaling 12 thematic workshops and 122 participants.
PROJECTS FOR 2024
In 2024, the Angola Humanitarian Mission has the possibility of becoming permanent, with a deepening of activities and longer periods of activity for the teams to work in the country. Shortly, a program is being formed that, step by step and in a practical manner, will begin to gather together initiatives of a Humanitarian nature, of Development and Education for the Consolidation of Peace.
Besides the continuation of activities developed together with the Santa Isabel Charity for Children’s Work, new initiatives have been envisaged, as well as cycles of training together with the Jean Piaget University of Angola, with a deepening of content related to Education Oriented to Overcoming Trauma; and in the Benguela province, together with the Doroteias Sisters and a potential partnership with Arigatou International, a training cycle based on the Toolkit Nurturing the Spiritual Development of Children in Early Childhood.
The Paula Frassinetti School of Higher Education (ESEPF) and the Fraternity – Humanitarian Missions (FIHM) will promote a second edition of the Course on Education in Emergency Situations and Humanitarian Responses, where it has been visualized including all the countries of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP) and speakers of the Portuguese language throughout the world, with a focus on Brazil, Portugal, Angola and Mozambique. The course must be carried out in the second trimester of 2024.
Another activity also for this year is the Updating of the Education Program with the subject of inclusive Education for People with Disabilities.
