Tools4Inclusion / T4I is a programme to help young people build more inclusive and cohesive communities. It supports young people from disadvantaged backgrounds such as Roma, refugees and migrants, while also engaging young people from mainstream society to actively contribute to reducing social inequalities.
🌄 “For every steep part, there is a flat part – this is also true for life.”
With such a thought, we concluded our three-day training in March, where Roma and non-Roma young people learned, hiked and developed together. The last time we had such a training was in the first years of Bagázs – now it has happened again. And it showed again: it makes sense.
🌠 We started the programme in Bag, where participants invited children in their own communities to inclusive sessions. From here we continued to Mátrakeresztes – with an overnight hike, pair discussions, and shared questions. We asked everyone to choose a partner they knew less well, and preferably to form a Roma-non-Roma pair. The climb up the hill was tough, but the connection helped.
In the following days we went around questions such as:
– What helps and what hinders the development of communities?
– What makes a diverse team work?
– How do we give each other good feedback?
– Why is it good for children to have Roma and non-Roma young people leading games together?
🎲There were games, exercises, drawings, feedback sessions, lots of laughter, tears too – and lots of insights.
The young people from Dány, Bag and Budapest all contributed. We are particularly proud that participants who were initially insecure have tried themself at leadership by the end of the training.
To quote our participants:
“After every steep part comes a flat part, which is true for life.”
“The best advice comes from people who have lived it.”
These three days were not just about knowledge. It was about being different, but not different. That we can think, question, fail and grow together. That inclusion is not a theory but a practice – and a shared experience.
We will continue. 💜
