The emphasis is on the relevance of developing a feeling of solidarity towards their friends from around the world, who live in completely different conditions. Besides moral solidarity, it is also important to teach them a type of “financial solidarity”. This is why we encourage the youth to set aside part of their allowance for the needs of their friends, even if it is a kuna or two, thus more of a symbolic gesture. Some of our little friends in Croatia are already doing this, and their families and classmates are also involved.
Primary schools and high schools are the first institutions relevant for the development of children. This is where they obtain the foundations of education and good manners which they will continue to build upon throughout their whole lives. This is why it is very important to point them in the right direction at an early age, giving them the opportunity to grow into people who will one day properly take care of themselves and of others.
In the process of educating children, the absence of emotional intelligence makes it very difficult to understand others and to control one’s emotions. On the other hand, those children who are emotionally intelligent, are more prone to take care of others and control their own behavior. Once the children start volunteering and expressing their emotional intelligence, the probability of them choosing those exact same values and empathy in the future, is higher.
We wish to encourage them from an early age to raise and develop awareness about living in Africa and Asia and about some burning questions in these areas – poverty, hunger, diseases (malaria, HIV). Unfortunately, even when it comes to adults in Croatia, many of them seem to be badly informed on the matter because the only reality discussed in our culture is the reality of our country and its surroundings. We believe children have to develop their sense of tolerance and solidarity from an early age – in regard to both those from their own country and from further away.
Some European countries work intensely on promoting these types of activities at their schools or they have implemented obligatory volunteering into their pupils’ school curriculum. The children will also hear a lot about the selfless giving of love and kindness of our volunteers, both in Croatia and abroad.
In Croatia the idea of volunteering has not been fully popularised just yet, and the organisation “Plavi andjeo” wishes to continue promoting volunteering as an important aspect of everyday work among both the younger and the older generations. The children will be able to apply their volunteering experience onto their everyday life, interacting with their friends and family. It is not necessary for all of them to become volunteers, but they will surely always carry within themselves at least that initial idea of humaneness and solidarity.
Furthermore, we wish to draw their attention to getting to know the everyday life and culture of these areas. The children can learn firsthand what the schools and the teaching look like in Africa and Asia, what their peers do in their spare time, what their everyday living conditions are like, what they dream and think of.
The experiences in our past work and interaction with the pupils of Ivan Šerver high school in Ivanić-Grad, Tomislav Špoljar Centre for education and schooling in Varaždin, Nikola Tesla primary school in Prečko and Juraj Dobrila secondary and vocational school in Pazin, tell us that the youth is very interested in this topic, and if motivated, they are willing to discuss and contemplate it. Some of these pupils have decided to participate in sponsoring the children and in various projects where the goal is to teach the idea of doing good in their community.
The organisation “Plavi andjeo” will gladly visit your school too. We will prepare diverse and educational content – photography and film presentation, the handing out of informative leaflets and further support on our part – the cooperation in communicating with the children from Africa and Asia (emails, letters), help with future presentations and exhibitions in your schools and the rest.
Your school can become a “friend” to our little friends in Africa and Asia for as long as you want. The children can exchange letters, that is, different school experiences with their friends. They can also collect donations for their peers through various projects.
Professor Anđela Kosovac and the pupils from her class at Ivan Šerver high school in Ivanić-Grad, now take care of two poor children from Bugembe and they do this through monthly donations that go towards their tuition fees. These pupils have become the two Bugembe children’s sponsors. Many others can join in doing the exact same thing if they want.
If you want to become involved in the realization of this project in your school, please contact us on info@plavi-andeo.hr
The most beautiful letter from a pupil at Tomislav Špoljar Centre for education and schooling in Varaždin
As part of the project “Cooperation with primary schools and high schools”, we also cooperate with Tomislav Špoljar Centre for education and schooling in Varaždin. We were happy to see the pupils were glad to cooperate with a primary school in Kisumu in Kenya. The pupils of B sixth grade class and their special education teacher Draženka Topol-Vukmirović, have got involved with the project “Two bottles of water”.
Their pupil Martin Bunić took part in the “International youth competition for the most beautiful letter” and the letter he wrote will be forwarded to Kenya personally by our volunteers.
We have enclosed on this website Martin’s letter to whom we are most grateful for his dedication and the love he demonstrated, and we also congratulate him on being the runner-up in the competition. We also thank the Centre for education and schooling, special teacher Draženka Topol-Vukmiorović and pedagogue Zlatko Bukvić for their cooperation and help.
