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Raising funds for my youth center in Sri Lanka

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Hi everyone,

I am raising funds for Shanthi Maargam, an NGO in Sri Lanka that I started in 2016. Shanthi Maargam provides free and safe spaces for adolescents and young people from any ethnicity, religion, and sexual orientation to strengthen their emotional well-being. Shanthi Maargam, which means ‘Pathways to Peace’ in Sri Lankas two main languages, was founded on the belief that by addressing mental health and emotional well-being from an early age we can break the cycle of gender-based violence in our communities. The name signifies the need to help children and youth heal from traumas they may have experienced or witnessed. We provide them with the skills to manage their emotions and find a deeper level of peace, which we believe can break the cycle of violence in families and the perpetration of violence in communities.

With a great team of counsellors, community workers, volunteers and interns Shanthi Maargam has been able to offer high quality counselling and art and drama therapy at our “Art of living” youth center located in a slum area in Colombo. We use the center to have conversations around sexual health, relationships, substance abuse, bullying, gender, abuse, life skills, leadership and other key topics that can create stress to adolescents. After the Easter Bombings in Sri Lanka [I], we also discuss ways to cope with violent incidents and encourage appreciation of Sri Lankas multi-cultural fabric.

Our work has helped many adolescents overcome feelings of depression, self-harm, wanting to take their own lives and other pressures they experience. We sometimes work with their parents to increase our impact. We also provide counseling through our  counseling hotline.

With the support of UNICEF Sri Lanka, we have adapted  two effective programs, which were developed in Hong Kong [ii] and India [iii] which support the holistic development of adolescents and reduce male violence against women and girls [iv].

(Art therapy session at the center)

 Given below is a summary of our work and impact since 2016:





We also hope to use the funds raised from this campaign to cover some operational expenses for our day to day work.

Recognition of our work
Even though Shanthi Maargam is still 3 years old, we have already received recognition for our work from "Good Market" in Sri Lanka in the "Wellbeing" category, for providing  services 1. which are inclusive for all adolescents and youth , 2.working with urban low income communities which are often neglected, 3.creating awareness on gender based violence, 4. conducting effective youth development programmes, 5. Providing internship opportunities and training people who wish to work in the field of mental health, 6. our community outreach programmes, 7. being innovative ; and 8.for creating much needed awareness around mental health. Good Market, Sri Lanka, which is a curated platform that makes it easier to find and connect with social enterprises, responsible businesses, and changemakers who are creating a better world (info.goodmarket.global/about.html) .


For more information on Shanthi Maargam please access our Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/ShanthiMaargamSL

Link to an article on Shanthi Maargam and its aims: https://prevention-collaborative.org/resource/holistic-youth-development-as-a-life-course-approach-to-violence-prevention/ 

 




[i] For more details on the Easter bombings in Sri Lanka and their impact: https://www.aljazeera.com/topics/events/sri-lanka-bombings.html
[ii] Details of the programme to support holistic development of adolescents: PATHS to Adulthood https://www.paths.hk/en/
[iii] Details of the programme to address harmful masculine attitudes and behaviours : Parivarthan https://www.icrw.org/research-programs/parivartan-coaching-boys-into-men/
[iv] Project link: https://www.facebook.com/Paths-To-Change-1612184525576773/

Donations 

  • Olga Kolchyna
    • €100
    • 3 yrs

Fundraising team (2)

Kamani Jinadasa
Organizer
Vienna
Rich Miller
Team member

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