We have a permanent play centre available for girls and boys who are at risk of social exclusion: principally, children of single parent families, of those who have been victims of gender based violence, and of inmigrants. We do activities adapted to the ages of the children and the families' social and economic situations. We wish now to increase the quality and breadth of this play centre by complementing it with workshops on robotics, science, art and technology.
Single parent families, victims of gender based violence and/or those who are at risk of social exclusion frequently encounter the problem of not knowing where to leave their children while they are involved with other activities, something which entails a constant need for this service. Advertisements continue to promote sexist gender roles. The statistics on women who undertake engineering degrees at the universities are proof that we need to aim for changes during the early education stages.
If a message is constantly being sent out that science, technology and construction are not meant for girls, it's likely that the situation will not improve. This help is absolutely necessary for boosting quality and innovation, and for covering interesting topics with the girls and boys who need it the most. With a play centre of this kind, one in which there are as many girls as there are boys, at first they will feel comfortable with it and will ultimately perceive it as something natural.
Currently women tend to sway towards professions related to care (infantile and elderly care principally). Our ultimate goal is to help create an egalitarian society in which neither gender based violence nor gender discrimination exist. A society where women feel free to follow their own desires when choosing a profession, without feeling pressured or criticized for their choice. To help create women who occupy high-level positions and who pursue careers which are currently male dominated.
This project has provided additional documentation in a Microsoft Word file (projdoc.doc).
