Stop Child Abuse and Bullying Project

Dear supporters,

On October 10th we held a diversity workshop in collaboration with the Osaka Creo West Gender Equality Centre to celebrate International Girl's Day! With 8 participants, we had students of many ages participating alongside their parents.

The seminar was under the theme of "What do you want to be?" - it is fairly easy for children to talk about what they want to do/become in the future, so we used this to our advantage and addressed how they should not limit themselves or others based on gender, race, or other differences.

Students and parents took part in a variety of activities and worksheets, with the seminar ending with children sharing their dreams with everyone. It was great to see children being supportive of eachother, with many of them trying their best to respond positively in English, showing how all dreams can be encouraged.

Here are some of the comments/feedback received from parents:

• "The importance of the idea that “Everyone is different, and everyone is great” really stuck with me."

• "I tend to make assumptions about my child’s path and future without thinking, but today’s seminar encouraged me to value my child’s feelings and sense of autonomy."

• "It made me realize that even as adults, we should have dreams every day and live life with joy."

• "The content was accessible even for second graders (lower elementary), and I thought it was a great introduction to the topic of gender."

We were happy to see that both parents and children enjoyed the workshop! Although our workshops operate in a limited time frame, we are grateful that parents can use them as a catalyst to facilitate discussions at home, or even reflect on their own biases/thoughts.

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As always, we appreciate your continued support and are looking forward to updating you in the upcoming months!