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In Poland and Romania, the prevention programme has worked with Ukrainian refugee youth and their local peers. In order to support the positive behaviour change to be embedded to young person's life parents play an important role.

Parents’ meetings

The latest studies in positive health prevention have revealed the importance of parental engagement, which is why the project teams also organized meetings with the parents of children and teenagers participating in the Life Skills education program. In total, 318 parents were reached, which happens to be the same number as youth engaged in the project and can be considered a great success given the challenge in engaging parents in any voluntary gatherings. 

The parents’ meetings served as a crucial platform to introduce the project’s main objectives, with a strong emphasis on the essential complementary role parents can play in prevention. The meetings also underscored the importance of parents prioritizing their own mental health and self-care—not only to provide the best possible support for their children but also to serve as positive role models. Another key topic of discussion was the increasing prevalence of substance-related and behavioral addictions among youth today. 

While initial parental engagement was slow and attendance at the first meetings remained low, trust in the project has steadily grown, leading to increased participation. In Romania, this progress has been particularly evident, as parents have taken the initiative to organize themselves into citizen groups, staying connected and supporting each another through WhatsApp communication. 

The current project funding is coming to an end in May 2025 and we seek new donors to our work. If you know new opportunities to us please contact us!

Thank you for your valuable support!

Since early 2024, the Life Skills education program for prevention has been successfully implemented in Rumania and Poland, benefiting both local and Ukrainian youth. Here we are, excited to share some key highlights from the ongoing project:

Two key factors related to the composition of the Rumainian and Polish project teams that have significantly contributed to the project's success thus far are: Firstly, all Life Skills facilitators either have an academic background in psychology and/or extensive experience working with children and teenagers or in substance addiction counseling and therapy, meaning they are extremely well qualified to facilitate Life Skills sessions. Secondly, the project teams consist of Polish/Romanian as well as Ukrainian team members, who share the experience of forced displacement with the Ukrainian children and teenagers participating in the project and can adapt to their specific needs and serve as a general link to the local Ukrainian refugee communities. Additionally, by selecting School 11 in Sibiu, Romania, which is attended by a majority of children and teenagers from the Romani community, the project team has demonstrated its commitment to Leaving No One Behind and including the most vulnerable and marginalized groups in the project, directly addressing issues of social exclusion and educational disparities.

The two projects have demonstrated incredible results, with a growing number of children actively participating in the Life Skills sessions at school. In the summer 2024, the impact extended even further as children joined Life Skills summer camps. We are pleased to carry this project into 2025, reaffirming our commitment to one of the core principle of Leaving No One Behind!

We are deeply grateful for the generous donation from GlobalGiving and the incredible support from our community. Your contributions make this work possible! Thank you for supporting this valuable project, which transforms lives!