Ensuring an efficient organization of the activity of the Mobile Safe Space, improving the training of the members of the mobile teams in order to provide quality services were the objectives of the training workshop conducted by the Educational Center PRO DIDACTICA Educational Center on 13-14 and 27-28 June 2024. The training was attended by the teams of the newly created Mobile Safe Spaces, in addition to 3 existing ones: the Ungheni District Youth Center and the Criuleni Youth Center. The four training sessions were conducted in offline and online formats, facilitated by trainers Elena Creangă and Natalia Grîu. During the four days, the trainees were familiarized with the mission, working principles and target groups of a Mobile Safe Space, the roles to be exercised by each team member and the inherent challenges, as well as the methodology of delivering the activities.

In an interactive learning format, theoretical and practical aspects related to the proper functioning of mobile entities were covered: the quality of the delivery of the learning sessions and the vector-topics addressed (gender-based violence: conceptual landmarks, prevention services in humanitarian crisis, the referral mechanism to GBV services and the role of mobile teams in this process, sexual and reproductive health, etc. ), effective communication, resilience and flexibility of mobile teams, building partnerships, planning of activities and framework for organizing sessions, working methods and techniques, ensuring inclusiveness of activities, safety and well-being of beneficiaries, conflict and conflict management, etc.

The workshop also aimed at developing the skills to identify the needs of the final beneficiaries, to motivate them to get involved in the activities proposed by the Mobile Safe Spaces, to create an environment free of any form of discrimination.

The project “Refugee Support Initiative”, as part of the Humanitarian Response in the Republic of Moldova, is implemented by EC PRO DIDACTICA, in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

Training the staff of the static and mobile Safe Spaces to carry out educational and recreational activities with the beneficiaries – Ukrainian refugees and members of local communities – is one of the action lines of the Refugee Support Initiative project.

The Mobile Safe Spaces (MSS) aim to empower young Ukrainian refugees in the Republic of Moldova, especially from remote rural areas, as well as their peers in the host localities, through information and training. They provide human rights education activities, support youth participation in community life, prevent gender-based violence (GBV) by promoting gender equality and equitable social norms. Their program also includes Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) approaches, which aim to help the growing generation acquire the knowledge and skills to make good decisions about sex and sexual and reproductive health not only in adolescence but throughout their lives.

This includes menstrual management tools and menstrual hygiene products. Special emphasis is placed on leisure and socializing, sports, artistic and cultural activities, creating friendly contexts for interaction and dialogue. The activities are geared towards the formation of civic, communication and interpersonal skills, behaviors necessary for sexual and reproductive health, for a healthy lifestyle, for successful integration into social and professional life, social cohesion.

Each SSM team consists of 4 members (coordinator, youth worker, psychologist, driver) and is responsible for several target districts/municipalities, depending on the number of refugees, their profile, available local institutions and services (medical, educational, law enforcement, youth centers, youth-friendly health centers, libraries, cultural centers, community centers, placement centers).

The organization of the workspace follows the principle of focusing on quality and ensuring inclusiveness of the activities, with several zones, depending on the specificities of the group (children, young people, adults): learning, socialization, recreation, individual support (as needed).

The Refugee Support Initiative project, as part of the Humanitarian Response in the Republic of Moldova, is implemented by C.E. PRO DIDACTICA, in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)

The training system of the CONSEPT project, Critical Thinking for Professional Skills Training, continued on 16-18 April with the third module in an online version, using the Zoom platform.

The participants of the training, 12 teachers and masters who teach specialist subjects at centres of excellence, colleges and vocational schools, continued to examine the possibilities of applying critical thinking techniques, as well as linking the philosophy of critical thinking to the teaching-learning-assessment process. The formative values of critical thinking in areas such as electronics, IT, car servicing and transport organisation, combined with the examination of multiple intelligences, the development of communication skills in a professional context, were explored through the lens of interactive techniques from traditional ones.

Emphasis on communication, discussion, argumentation, especially in highly technical jobs, will hopefully bear the expected fruit. The main form of design and delivery of the approach was the model lesson. Sufficient space and time was reserved for debriefing, metacognition, immediate application and transfer to the subjects the learners were teaching.