City of Vienna "Girl Power Workshops"

Institution:

City of Vienna Department for Women's Affairs

Challenge:

With schools or other educational institutions having little to no resources for specific girl empowerment projects, young women and girls often lack information about their rights, empowering factors and the available solutions to the challenges faced by many women in their adolescence. 

Solution:

To provide qualitative empowerment tools, the City of Vienna Department for Women's Affairs has created informative and interactive “Girl Power Workshops”. Any school or educational institution in Vienna can send an enquiry to the Women's Service for groups of girls aged 14 to 22. The focus on four topics:

• Labour: Knowing your rights and responsibilities at work
• Rights: Learning about human, women and adolescent rights
• Media: Supporting a healthy self esteem and safe conduct online
• Against Violence against Women: Providing information and support to lead a safe life and learn about respectful relationships

The workshops use interactive methods, such as videos, quizzes and other collective exercises, to reflect on the chosen topic. External lecturers hold the workshop in the facilities of the Department. To create a comfortable and open space during the workshops, the number of participants is limited to 14 girls, while the teachers are asked to withdraw.

Impact:

The “Girl Power Workshops” give young women and girls the possibility to learn more about their rights and responsibilities. They learn about their rights and the counselling network for girls and women in Vienna. The workshops also provide them with a safe space to share their questions, worries, or struggles with their peers as well as professional youth educators. The direct feedback of the participants after the workshops is overwhelmingly enthusiastic.

City of Vienna Department for Women's Affairs - Homepage

"Girl Power Workshops" - Project