Education Kosovo Project #71098

A new centre for new opportunities

by The Ideas Partnership

Project Report | Feb 11, 2026
Strengthening Azure Learning Center for a better future

By Almedina Ajvazi | Coordinator of Private Donations

Children holding activities in warm spaces.

For three years now, the Azure Learning Center in Fushë Kosovë has been a safe and empowering space for children, women, and families in need. It has hosted learning activities, parentitng classess, skills training, and community support programs — becoming a pillar of hope for many.

This year, we are proud to share an important milestone.

While the center has been fully functional for years, a few critical elements remained unfinished — specifically the installation of the thermal heat pump system, as well as proper heating, cooling, and ventilation solutions. These were essential to ensure stable and comfortable conditions throughout the year.

Thanks to your continued support through GlobalGiving, these final improvements have now been completed.

The center is now fully equipped with a modern heating and cooling system, including ventilation that guarantees healthy air circulation. This means that during cold winters and hot summers, children can learn comfortably, women can attend trainings without disruption, and families can receive services in a safe and dignified environment.

These upgrades may seem technical, but for our community they mean consistency, stability, and care. They ensure that programs can continue year-round without interruption and that everyone who walks through our doors feels welcomed and protected.

Azure Learning Center is not just a building — it is a space of opportunity. And now, with all essential conditions in place, it is stronger than ever.

Thank you for helping us complete this important chapter and continue building brighter futures together.

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Oct 17, 2025
From Literacy to Leadership: The Ripple Effect of The Ideas Partnership

By Rachel Weikel | Volunteer

Omer, Amin, Xhelal, Rachel

Arriving to the centre after my flight from the UK, I was greeted by the visiting midwife. This felt fitting, as it may be the first of many points of contact a community member would have with The Ideas Partnership.

Soon I met a group of students in the corridor. Xhelal (14) enjoys singing and has been attending for two years now. Omer (13) and Amin (16) have both been attending the centre since kindergarten. Omer is enjoying learning in the new computer lab. Later I find Xhelal and Amin on the poster made by the Young Leaders Programme. “Build a Team So Strong You Don’t Know Who the Boss Is” the poster says. This captures well my impressions of the centre, whose staff are often members of the community they serve.

The new Free Shop had helped over 400 people with donated goods in the week that I visited. 450 school children also received school supplies for the new academic year, a responsibility that can serve as a barrier for families, and more than 1000 people benefited in general from the center and from activities as well.

I met a woman running a small craft business. Her affiliation with the centre began when she attended adult literacy classes. The centre also offer support in registering for social services.

Much thought has gone into what services the community desperately need, and whether these can be provided with the funds available. Recent funding cuts have resulted in services being rationed, for example the midwife wasn’t able to attend for quite some time.

The donations we give make such a direct impact on what is possible. It was a pleasure to see diligent and committed care in action with such a meaningful impact to over a thousand people in the community this year. The ripple effect of our ongoing contributions will continue their impact well into the future.

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Oct 8, 2025
Volunteering with The Ideas Partnership - Sharing Art and Music in Kosovo

By Lily Whetham | Volunteer

My name is Lily, and this summer I travelled from the UK to volunteer with The Ideas Partnership on a summer project bringing art and music to disadvantaged children in Kosovo. As an A-level student, I was nervous about whether I’d have much to offer, but I hoped my love of art and creativity could bring something meaningful.

Your support provides the money for teachers and transport for volunteers to work with the children. Their dedication to the organisation and the children was immediately apparent. This was holiday season and regular lessons has ceased but the centres were staffed and open, giving children a welcoming place to meet and socialise together and projects like ours were keeping them learning. Therefore we were working with a wide mix of abilities and ages, older children bringing their siblings along to participate too.

From the moment we arrived at the children’s centre in Fushe Kosove on Friday, I knew this was going to be an unforgettable experience. Children running to greet us, watching the newcomers with wide eyes. Their smiles were was infectious, and made us want to find out as much about them as they wanted to about us. Although I worried at first about the language barrier, with the help of an amazing volunteer interpreter, the children’s enthusiasm and the international language of mimes, those fears quickly disappeared.

We started with story-based activities, giving the children space to talk about themselves. Their imaginations spilled out into colourful collages, each one a patchwork of ideas, dreams, and favourite things. Then we used ribbons linking one child’s work to another, showing the things they had in common and connecting them together as a group. While we were there, another of our team, Debbie introduced music using melodicas donated by her school. It was harder than expected to teach such a large class, but the children’s laughter and determination filled the room with joy. Some children had favourite songs they’d heard played, tunes they collectively sung and know, but music making together and working as a group was different and challenging. Together we were stamping and clapping out beats, learning rhythms and overlapping them to create accompaniments to songs.

This incredible experience could not have taken place without the dedicated work space provided by the TIP learning centres that your donations keep open. A place that brings children together to learn, offering them opportunities that they would otherwise have no access to.

The classrooms were hot but TIP staff provided much needed water to keep the children hydrated. Your support enabled snacks too to be handed out and gratefully received at the end of the day.

Saturday brought a story about a pebble, which explored the themes of displacement, loneliness, fear and friendship through the eyes of a little girl. The children helped re-tell the story by acting it out before painting their own stones. Some decorated theirs with flowers, others with animals, scenes, and faces. Later, I helped lead the girls’ club, where we spoke about what it’s like to be a girl in the UK, shared personal goals, and created crafts together. The atmosphere was more reflective and supportive, giving the girls confidence to celebrate themselves.

The ‘girls group’ is an important part of what you are enabling The Ideas Partnership to achieve. For girls in this community the hurdles they face getting into education are only the first part of the puzzle. The second is keeping them there. They face the problem of dealing with menstruation, often escalated by a lack of hygiene products in the home. Then there are the cultural expectations about taking on nurturing roles in the family or marrying young to provide a dowry.

The girls group provides them with a safe space to discuss such issues. It promotes friendship bonds with other females, who can give support and a sense of solidarity.

“I liked the hand activity, we had a chance to express ourselves.” - a quote from Jeta, age 16.

By the end of the trip, I realised that our art and music activities had done more than simply entertain — they gave the children a voice, a way to share their identities and be recognised. I came to Kosovo hoping to teach but anxious about my ability to communicate in a foreign language. As I left, I was reminded of something simple and powerful: creativity is a language of its own which everyone deserves to have access to.

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