Lingnan Partner Community Support Centre (Guangzhou)
BalkanKids Foundation (Bulgaria)
Sexual Education and Technology Addiction Prevention for Marginalized Youth
The education of young adults, especially underprivileged and abandoned youth has been the focus of the Balkan Kids Foundation from Varna, Bulgaria for many years. In the Lingnan Partner Community Centre they have found an organization specializing in sexual education of the same target group.
This exchange focuses on new innovative outreach strategies in youth education.
Yao Zhilu (Lingnan Partners) & Antoaneta Pophlebarova (BalkanKids Foundation)
The bilateral exchange took place in Guangzhou and Varna respectively between July and November 2016. Its aim was to create closer bonds between BalkanKids Foundation, Varna and Lingnan Partners, Guangzhou in the field of sexual education, youth work opportunities and volunteering for disadvantaged young people.
The project was greatly successful due to the friendly professional link between Antoaneta and Zhilu and resulted in 15 trained peer-to-peer high school educators, lots of youth work on field, enhanced understanding of China and Europe and most importantly ideas for future projects.
The Twinning has also resulted in a Follow-Up project on the Forum Theatre concept as a tool for sexual education in 2017.
“My personal highlight was going beyond the cliché of China as a severely disciplined, restrictive country and seeing a welcoming and flourishing environment for businesses, NGO work and personal well-being.”
Antoaneta Pophlebarova
Activities Antoanta visiting Lingnan in Guangzhou
Chinese sexual education material
- Getting acquainted with the network of NGOs working in sexual education, HIV prevention and detection, educational support for disadvantaged children and migrant children
- Getting acquainted with the various health education and youth involvement structures in the Guangzhou region.
- Introduction of the the European Union youth work support structures and European Voluntary Service (EVS) volunteering opportunities to Chinese youth workers
- Two-day conference on sexual education and LGBT rights
Activities Yao Zhilu visiting BalkanKids in Varna
- Sexual education among disadvantaged and foster care children. We also attempted to educate them on sexual issues using the methodology of the Guangdong Peer-to-Peer Education model from China.
- High school peer-to-peer educator training on topics of sexual minorities, love, sexual behavior and decision-making, sexual harassment, prevention of STDs and AIDS, contraception and abortion.
“The multicultural aspect of the Twinning helped underline specific needs with regard to sexual education among different age groups and people with varying cultural backgrounds.”
Yao Zhilu
Twinning Report Lingnan & BalkanKids
Twinning Experience Presentation Lingnan & BalkanKids
About the Twinning organizations
Lingnan Partner Community Support Centre, Guangzhou
Lingnan Partner Community Support Centre with its five full-time, nine part-time employees and 37 volunteers is China’s biggest NGO working mainly on sexual health services and education in South China. The organisation was founded in 2007 and works closely together with Guangdong Provincial Department of Education, Guangdong Family Planning Association and other institutions which enables them to reach China’s youth with their educational programs. The Centre holds many seminars during which they teach young people about sexually transmitted diseases like HIV and health risk prevention.
Balkan Kids Foundation, Bulgaria
The BalkanKids Foundation from Varna, Bulgaria was founded in 2004. Their work is focused on young people from disadvantaged economic backgrounds, orphanages and those trying to overcome addictions. The foundation’s aim is the prevention of risky behaviour in youth by developing programs for inclusion and social leadership. They manage foster homes, day care centres and other social institutions. The organisation teaches through non-formal educational methods, for instance, by incorporating sports and music. BalkanKids also work on promoting of civic activity and intercultural tolerance through various campaigns, events and media.
