MeDiAPLUR - Fostering Media competences of Bloggers in Ukraine

The MeDiAPLUR project is a German-Ukrainian cooperation.

MeDiAPLUR – Fostering Media competences of Bloggers in Ukraine – focuses on the development and implementation of courses to promote media literacy among adolescents and young women with the aim of strengthening plurality in Ukraine.

MeDiAPLUR focuses on young women who represent the internally displaced population. Local NGO activists and representatives of local authorities are also part of the target group. They are able to make themselves heard and are willing to drive change through blogging. 

In Ukraine, young women generally enjoy the same legal status as men. However, Ukraine is in the midst of a conflict that is leading to insecurity among the population. Since 2014, Ukraine has been experiencing an armed conflict, unrest and ethnic tensions (exacerbated by the annexation of Crimea). Young girls are severely affected by displacement/violence. The OHCHR reports an increase in domestic violence, rape and prostitution. The government of Ukraine published the first National Action Plan (NAP) on February 24, 2016. It defines the framework/measures for a coordinated implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 and removes cultural barriers for women, e.g. in relation to negotiations and conflict resolution, peace and security, etc.

The application covers 5 regions and over 5000 young women from Donbass and Crimea living in Ukrainian territories. The awareness of female leaders in online measures will be improved. 

Objective: Local participation of women, protection and strengthening of their rights in conflict situations, combating propaganda, etc. The political impact lies in raising awareness among NGO leaders in the field of blogging/digitization. In the seminars and talks, we promote relationships and contribute to peaceful conflict resolution. Interregional exchange programs build bridges and counteract prejudices.

Preparatory phase (months 1-2):

The team collects data from 5 regional focus groups, finalizes the action strategy and begins developing the training model, including developing and publishing brochures, a trainer manual and roll-ups. Applications for 4 interregional leadership training sessions are implemented. HRF partners will establish close contacts with local NGO leaders in rural Ukraine, municipal social workers and media outlets that advocate for women.

In 5 regional events, so-called “Youth voices”, the action will be presented in each target region.

Training phase (months 2-3):

1) 4-day “1325: Women.Peace SecurityTraining” for youth leaders (30 persons) will strengthen the equal participation of women in community development. Key modules: Implementation of Resolution 1325; Information dissemination and management.

2) 4-day course “Advocacy Youth Campaigning” for youth leaders (30 persons). Course modules: Using ICT and social media for advocacy purposes, blogging, collaboration; online/e-learning; crowdsourcing, combating fake news, etc.

3) 4-day course “Louder than words” for 30 female opinion leaders. The course will train youth journalists in writing and make efficient use of blogging/social media/modern digital tools.

4) 4-day course “Working with Conflict” for 30 professionals from youth NGOs. The course will train youth NGO experts from both sides of the conflict. It will use conflict resolution methods, peace education techniques, blogging/social media and digital tools in the reconciliation process.

Main phase (months 4-7):

1) 5 regional two-day advocacy seminars on modern online advocacy for local youth leaders with the aim of promoting civil advocacy capacities for social media with innovative digital tools. Trained: 125 youth leaders, peer educators and activists. An action plan will be drawn up at the end of each seminar.

2) 5 regional two-day blogging technique seminars for 125 youth leaders. Aim: to develop the social media capacities of civil society actors using innovative digital tools. Agenda: Niche in blogging? Blogging trends; Women and blogging; Blogger: Platform Tilda – first blogs; Tools: Powtoon, Canva. Action plan: I am Media

3) Key project element: Each action plan/one per region includes 50 weekly blog café workshops (10 per region), numerous online blogs, expert tips, press conferences (5). Blog café workshops develop the skills of youth leaders. When completed, blogs will have an impact on local communities.

Evaluation phase (months 8-9):

1) A 2-day final evaluation forum for 40 key project stakeholders will be held. The forum will develop recommendations for the effective use of social media for peace and security. The final action evaluation will take place at the steering committee meeting.

2) Five “Youth Advocacy and Social Media” evaluation rounds (200 participants / 5 target regions). An analysis of the campaigns will take place at the “Final Evaluation Forum”.