German Prevention Days
Germany | EUD WM news | Petra Lolk, Renate Grebe, Sandra Groß | June 19, 2023
The enditnow® team from Hanse joins 150 organizations in bringing awareness to many types of abuse and discrimination at a national exhibition in Cottbus.
A huge exhibition with more than 150 organizations and institutions with their booths, various workshops, and lectures about the most interesting topics on prevention work, and in the middle of it all, there we were, the enditnow® team of the Hanse Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. This led to many intense conversations and a lot of information exchange that has enriched and enabled us to continue our service to our churches.
During the last few years, the enditnow® project was represented with an exhibition stand, but this year we were able to fully concentrate on "gathering information." Various training sessions that we as a team can attend online and on-site to learn more about sexual and domestic violence prevention were offered to us. Information material on child and youth protection in the context of nicotine and alcohol use as well as drugs and meds addictions.
We were given a lot of material for our own training as well as material to be passed on to our churches and children on our enditnow® Sabbaths.
Federal as well as state police, federal agencies, social services, and many other agencies and institutions encouraged us in our work and pledged their support. Training courses and workshops for young people and children in the context of civil courage, anti-discrimination, and against bullying were offered to us.
We were particularly impressed by the "Social Service of Muslim Women" with their project "Women Strengthen Women." There, young women between 15 and 25 are given a space where they can strengthen each other and develop freely. Better inclusion and prevention from radicalization are thus achieved. Does it sound familiar to you? Girls4Christ and our Women's Ministries are our equivalents to this project. Women find access to women faster and through them to their families.
Prevention is so diverse and covers a wide spectrum: women's and children's rights, projects for male victims of domestic violence, religious freedom, and a stand against any kind of discrimination: regardless of skin color, gender, religion, and sexual orientation.
Now we go home with full suitcases and minds. At home, we will contextualize everything and absorb the impressions and information in our hearts and minds to incorporate all of this into our work.
Our goal is good cooperation with the churches of the Hanseatic Conference. We plan to put up an enditnow® booth ourselves again at the Prevention Days in Cottbus next year.
According to a report by the enditnow® team: Petra Lolk, Renate Grebe, and Sandra Groß
Published in Mosaic newsletter, 2023 Q3
